Four years ago, it was announced that Rachel Weisz had signed on to star in and produce the psychological suspense thriller Séance on a Wet Afternoon, based on Mark McShane’s 1961 novel of the same name. Enola Holmes director Harry Bradbeer had originally been on board to direct the film, but since he got caught up in the making of Enola Holmes 2, he was replaced at the helm by Let the Right One In director Tomas Alfredson. Now, the project has finally gone into production, with Weisz in the lead role and Alfredson directing – and Variety reports that Weisz is joined in the cast by Matthew Macfadyen (Succession) and Joe Alwyn (Hamnet).
Synopsis
Scripted by Adolescence co-creator and Emmy winner Jack Thorne, Séance on a Wet Afternoon will follow Myra, a self-proclaimed medium who convinces her husband Billy to kidnap the son of a wealthy family so she can lead the police to the ‘missing’ child and legitimize her psychic abilities. When Myra’s true intentions come to light, however, Billy realizes her plan threatens to consume them both.
Filming is taking place in the U.K.
Previous Version
Séance on a Wet Afternoon was previously brought to the screen in 1964, with a film directed by Bryan Forbes and starring Richard Attenborough and Kim Stanley. That movie was well-received by critics and even earned Stanley an Academy Award nomination, but was such a commercial failure that it helped bring about the downfall of the Allied Film Makers production company. Séance on a Wet Afternoon also served as the inspiration for a 2000 Japanese TV movie simply called Séance.
This new take on the concept is coming our way from Element Pictures and Astral Projection. Robyn Slovo is producing the film alongside Ed Guiney and Andrew Lowe for Element Pictures (a Fremantle company) and Polly Stokes and Weisz for Astral Projection, as part of its first-look and development deal with Fremantle. Film4 and Fremantle are financing the film. Executive producers include Thorne, Macfadyen, Farhana Bhula, and David Kimbangi for Film4.
Are you looking forward to seeing Rachel Weisz, Matthew Macfadyen, and Joe Alwyn in a version of Séance on a Wet Afternoon that’s directed by Tomas Alfredson? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
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