When we first heard about director Juan Carlos Medina's gothic murder mystery THE LIMEHOUSE GOLEM last year, Alan Rickman was joining the cast to play police inspector John Kildare. Sadly, Rickman became ill and had to drop out of the project. He passed away early this year, but part of him lives on in the way Kildare is presented in the finished film, as screenwriter Jane Goldman made some alterations to the character based on the notes and thoughts Rickman provided. Goldman says, "It's lovely to feel his spirit in there."
The actor who ended up playing Kildare is Bill Nighy, who stars opposite Olivia Cooke, Douglas Booth, and Eddie Marsan.
Based on Peter Ackroyd's 1994 novel Dan Leno and the Limeshouse Golem, Medina's film is said to be in the style of SEVEN and THE WOMAN IN BLACK, with a twist that promises to be more sensational than the one in THE CRYING GAME
The story is set in
an atmospheric 1880 London when a series of murders has shaken the community to the point where people believe that only a legendary creature from dark times — the mythical Golem — must be responsible.
Police inspector John Kildare is brought in to solve the mystery and calm the panicked population. He is talked through the past of Elizabeth Cree, a music hall performer accused of poisoning her husband, as he seeks clues that might help his investigation and is soon hot on the trail of the deranged killer.
Fictionalized versions of historical figures get involved with the story, with the essence of Jack the Ripper looming over the proceedings.
Produced by Stephen Woolley and Elizabeth Karlsen of Number 9 Films, THE LIMEHOUSE GOLEM will be making its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival this Saturday. To mark the occasion, a clip from the film – focused on a story Cooke's character is telling Nighy's Kildare- was provided to Deadline and can be seen below.
