A new Jane Austen adaptation is officially on its way, and it’s one we’ll want to keep an eye on! Focus Features and Working Title are bringing Sense and Sensibility back to the screen, with director Georgia Oakley at the helm and a cast that feels like a dream. Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esme Creed-Miles will lead the film as Elinor and Marianne Dashwood. They will be the two Austen’s iconic sisters whose paths through love and loss have enchanted readers and audiences for generations. Filming is already underway in the UK, so the countdown starts now.
What is the Cast of ‘Sense and Sensibility’ So Far?
Joining Edgar-Jones and Creed-Miles is an impressive ensemble that makes this fresh take even more exciting. According to Variety, Caitríona Balfe (our Claire in Outlander) will play Mrs. Dashwood, the sisters’ fiercely devoted mother, while 1917 star George MacKay steps into the role of Edward Ferrars, Elinor’s reserved and kind-hearted love interest. Frank Dillane will bring charm — and likely trouble — to the screen as John Willoughby, Marianne’s early love. Herbert Nordrum will portray Colonel Brandon, the more grounded suitor who eventually wins Marianne’s heart.
Fiona Shaw adds gravitas as Mrs. Jennings, the boisterous and well-meaning family friend who hosts the sisters during their time in London. Rising star Bodhi Rae Breathnach will play the youngest Dashwood sister, Margaret. The combination of seasoned veterans and new talent promises a dynamic and emotionally rich retelling of Austen’s first novel.
Behind the camera, BAFTA-nominated director Georgia Oakley brings her nuanced storytelling to the classic tale, working from a script by bestselling author Diana Reid. With production backing from Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner of Working Title, alongside India Flint and Jo Wallett, expectations are high. Reid’s involvement suggests we’re in for an adaptation that captures Austen’s wit and insight while feeling modern and emotionally resonant.
Sense and Sensibility has been adapted for screen several times, but the 1995 version by Ang Lee — starring Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet, and Hugh Grant — remains the gold standard. This new version isn’t trying to compete with the past. Instead, it seems intent on offering something fresh, grounded in emotional truth and shaped by a modern lens. With Oakley’s vision, Reid’s script, and this cast? We might be looking at the next essential Austen adaptation.
The Plot:
The plot of the movie is not revelated yet but the novel’s logline is: “A work of romantic fiction, better known as a comedy of manners, Sense and Sensibility is set in southwest England, London, and Kent between 1792 and 1797, and portrays the life and loves of the Dashwood sisters, Elinor and Marianne. The novel follows the young ladies to their new home, a meagre cottage on a distant relative’s property. Upon the death of their father, they find themselves suddenly destitute, and pursue both love and financial security. In the cottage, they will experience love, romance, and heartbreak. The philosophical resolution of the novel is ambiguous: the reader must decide whether sense and sensibility have truly merged.”
Release Date:
No release date has been announced yet, but the filming was officially begins. We’ll be watching this one closely. If you’re already picturing Edgar-Jones as the composed Elinor or imagining Creed-Miles’s take on Marianne’s passion, you’re not alone. Anyone who swoons over sweeping love stories, this Sense and Sensibility should be on your radar!
NEXT: Here’s Who We’d Cast in the New Sense and Sensibility Movie
