It looks like Helen Mirren is the newest talent to join Disney’s upcoming live-action adaptation of The Nutcracker. The Hollywood Reporter is exclusively reporting the legendary actress is in talks to star in the film.
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Alongside Mirren, the film’s cast boasts appearances from Mackenzie Foy, Keira Knightley, Morgan Freeman, and Misty Copeland. Of course, Copeland will be a familiar name for ballet fans as the dancer is one of the world’s most well-know ballerinas. Director Lasse Hallstrom will be directing the film with Mark Gordon producing. The script will be overseen by Ashleigh Powell, and Lindy Goldstein stands as the film’s executive producer.
Disney’s adaptation will be titled The Nutcracker and the Four Realms and be based E.T.A. Hoffman’s classic tale, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. The story first became famous following its adaptation into a two-act ballet that debuted back in 1892 to mild success. However, the production gained popularity in the late 1960s and has since become a staple in the ballet world alongside other shows such as Swan Lake.
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms will follow its predecessor closely as the film centers on a young girl named Clara (Foy) after she receives a nutcracker doll on Christmas Eve. However, the gift holds some secrets which no child would ever expect. When Clara goes to check on her toy just before midnight, she finds herself transported to a magical world where a war is being waged between gingerbread soldiers and mice. With only her nutcracker to guide her, Clara must discover why she was introduced to this strange, new world.
According to THR, Mirren is being tapped to play a character called Mother Ginger. The actress was last seen in Trumbo in 2015, and her next project will hit theaters when Collateral Beauty opens on December 16th. As for her work in The Nutcracker, the film will reunited Mirren with Hallstrom as the pair worked together on The Hundred-Foot Journey. Currently, there’s no official release date attached to The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, but fans are speculating the film will drop no sooner than late-2017.
