Young Woman and the Sea Trailer: Daisy Ridley Stars in New Disney Movie Based on a True Story

Star Wars' Daisy Ridley is stepping into a new heroic tale. On Thursday, during their panel at CinemaCon, Walt Disney Studios released the first trailer for Young Woman and the Sea, a new biopic starring and produced by Ridley. The film, which was originally developed to debut exclusively on Disney+, was confirmed to be getting a limited theatrical release earlier this year, after it reportedly performed well in test screenings. 

Young Woman and the Sea is based on the book Young Woman and the Sea: How Trudy Ederle Conquered the English Channel and Inspired the World from Glenn Stout.

What Is Young Woman and the Sea About?

Young Woman and the Sea tells the story of Gertrude Ederle, the accomplished swimmer who was born to immigrant parents in New York City in 1905. Through the steadfast support of her older sister and supportive trainers, she overcame adversity and the animosity of a patriarchal society to rise through the ranks of the Olympic swimming team and complete the staggering achievement – a 21-mile trek from France to England.

Young Woman and the Sea is directed by Joachim Rønning, with a script from Jeff Nathanson. The film is produced by Top Gun producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who acquired the rights to Stout's book back in 2015. In addition to Ridley, the cast of Young Woman and the Sea includes Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Stephen Graham, Kim Bodnia, Christopher Eccleston, and Glenn Fleshler.

Will Daisy Ridley Return to Star Wars?

One of the next Star Wars blockbusters is expected to be the currently-untitled movie from Ms. Marvel director Sharmeed Obaid-Chinoy, which will see the return of Ridley as Rey. Last year, it was revealed that Damon Lindelof and Britt-Gibson had both departed the project, with Peaky Blinders' Stephen Knight brought on to rewrite the script. Lindelof and Britt-Gibson's version of the film would have reportedly been set sixty years after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and followed a much older version of Rey.

"I will just say, that for reasons that I can't get into on this Sunday morning, on this day, the degree of difficulty is extremely, extremely, extremely high. If it can't be great, it shouldn't exist," Lindelof recently admitted to /Film about his project. "That's all I'll say, because I have the same association with it as you do, which is, it's the first movie I saw sitting in my dad's lap, four years old, May of '77. I think it's possible that sometimes when you hold something in such high reverence and esteem, you start to get in the kitchen and you just go, 'Maybe I shouldn't be cooking. Maybe I should just be eating.' We'll just leave it at that point."

What do you think of the first trailer for Young Woman and the Sea? Are you excited to check out the film? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

Young Woman and the Sea will be released in select theaters on May 31st.