I somehow keep forgetting that we're about to get another adaptation of Great Expectations, despite the fact that it's being directed by veteran (and former Harry Potter director Mike Newell and is being tied into what's apparently a huge celebration for Charles Dickens's 200th birthday. But the production is indeed moving forward, and is drawing in an up-and-comer and a recent Oscar nominee to take two of the lead roles. According to Variety, star of the upcoming War Horse Jeremy Irvine is in negotiations to play Pip, while Helena Bonham Carter is in talks to play the spooky benefactor Miss Havisham.
Production is set to start this fall, and the key role of Estella, the young girl who is Miss Havisham's ward and whom Pip falls in love with at a young age, has yet to be cast. It hasn't been all that long since Great Expectations went on film-- the 1998 version starred Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow, and was directed by another future Harry Potter veteran, Alfonso Cuaron-- but it's kind of one of those evergreen stories that always has something new to offer in each incarnation. And it will be exciting to already see more from Irvine, who has experience on the stage in England but is virtually unknown at the movies. If starring in a Spielberg movie wasn't a strong enough sign that he's a rising star, this definitely adds to the argument.
