Emma Thompson’s long-awaited Effie is finally cranking into gear with the announcement that Dakota Fanning has signed on to take the film’s leading role.
Set in 1850’s London, Effie tells the story of Effie Gray and her tumultuous marriage to art critic John Ruskin. Despite Gray’s famed good looks, Ruskin never consummated the marriage and his heartbroken wife eventually fell in love with somebody else. That somebody was Ruskin’s protégé, the painter John Everett Milias.
Thompson’s husband Greg Wise will play Ruskin, whilst The Boat That Rocked star Tom Sturridge has been earmarked for Milias, a role that had initially been linked to Orlando Bloom.
Julie Walters and Derek Jacobi lend a healthy dose of experience to a relatively young cast as Ruskin’s parents, whilst Thompson herself will appear as Lady Eastlake, the woman who offers the tortured Effie a shoulder to cry on. Edward Fox is currently thought to be in talks to play her husband.
An Englishman In New York ’s Richard Laxton is in place to direct, with production set to begin on October 17. Filming will take place in Scotland, London and Venice.