The new adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma has serious fashion credentials

You would be forgiven for rolling your eyes at the thought of yet another Jane Austen adaptation. The ones that are good are faultless. (See: the 1995 BBC miniseries version of Pride and Prejudice and Emma Thompson’s Oscar-nominated Sense and Sensibility from the same year.) The ones that are bad, however, are a crime against literature. Over the years, our cultural obsession with the Georgian writer has seen her works transformed into whodunits (Death Comes To Pemberley); populated with zombies; and reimagined as erotic fiction in the form of Mr Darcy Takes A Wife, a story of “a nobleman and a heartthrob whose virility is matched only by his utter devotion to his wife”. Yes, really.

The forthcoming remake of Emma, however, looks incredibly promising—not least because the stylish fashion photographer Autumn de Wilde is set to direct. This may be her feature debut, but the 48-year-old’s resume is impressive. To date, she’s shot campaign videos for Prada; taken portraits of music legends such as Elliott Smith, Beck, and Fiona Apple; photographed look books for Rodarte; and filmed music videos for the likes of Jenny Lewis and Florence + The Machine. The Favourite has already shown how influential a period drama can be from a style perspective. Can you imagine what De Wilde could do with the early 19th century’s satin gowns, transparent muslins, and lace parasols?

Just as impressive is the fact that novelist Eleanor Catton, who won the Man Booker Prize in 2013 for The Luminaries, is writing the script. The cast, meanwhile, is nothing short of brilliant. Anya Taylor-Joy will take on the role of Miss Dashwood after proving her flair for period dramas in the BBC adaptation of The Miniaturist—with Johnny Flynn (Vanity Fair and Les Misérables) as the honourable George Knightley and Josh O’Connor (God’s Own Country) as the social climbing Mr Elton. Mia Goth will also play the guileless Harriet Smith, with none other than Bill Nighy appearing as Emma’s father Mr Woodhouse.

Taylor-Joy took to Instagram last week to celebrate the start of filming, posting an image of Autumn de Wilde in a director’s chair in front of a pastoral scene that calls to mind de Wilde’s Rodarte campaign. “👩🏻‍🎨🎬👸🏼 Oh captain, my captain,” she wrote. “I took this photograph of our fearless, fabulous director @autumndewilde a week before shooting began on EMMA. Halfway through our first week and I am more in love with both her and Ems than I thought possible. My heart and mind have been completely taken over by these two ladies and I couldn’t be more thrilled. Universe… You rock 💋✨” Filming is due to continue for the rest of the spring—although the locations are still being kept under wraps.

This article originally appeared at Vogue.co.uk

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