Colin Farrell, Domhnall Gleeson, Niamh Algar, Alison Oliver and Simone Kirby are among the Irish stars set to lead a major new Netflix production that will begin filming across Ireland and Northern Ireland later this month.
Colin Farrell. Photo credit: Denis Makarenko/Shutterstock
The streaming giant has confirmed that production on Bad Bridgets, the latest film from Kneecap writer and director Rich Peppiatt, is due to get underway in mid-July on locations across the island of Ireland.
Set in 19th-century New York, the historical drama follows two sisters who flee an abusive father, poverty and hunger in Ireland in search of a better life in America. After arriving in New York, they become involved with a notorious group of Irish immigrant women known as the "Bridgets", whose exploits earn them a reputation for causing mayhem throughout the city.
Niamh Algar. Photo credit: Fred Duval/Shutterstock
Emilia Jones and Alison Oliver will lead the film, with the newly announced cast including Colin Farrell, Domhnall Gleeson, Niamh Algar, Simone Kirby, Steve Coogan, Charlie Heaton and Himesh Patel.
Netflix has yet to reveal which characters the actors will portray.
Domhnall Gleeson. Photo credit: MLM Images, Shutterstock
The project marks another major production for Rich Peppiatt, whose acclaimed Irish-language film Kneecap won the Outstanding Debut prize at the BAFTA Film Awards last year and went on to receive an Oscar shortlist nomination.
The film draws inspiration from the Bad Bridget research project created by historians Elaine Farrell and Leanne McCormick, who later published the book Bad Bridget: Crime, Mayhem and the Lives of Irish Emigrant Women.
Their research explores the lives of Irish women who emigrated to North America during the 19th and early 20th centuries, including many who became caught up in the criminal justice system.
Emilia Jones. Photo credit: Fred Duval/Shutterstock
The production also boasts strong Irish talent behind the camera.
Ryan Kernaghan, the Northern Irish cinematographer who won a BAFTA earlier this year for his work on Trespasses, has joined the crew.
The film has been developed with support from Queen's University Belfast and is being produced with support from Northern Ireland Screen, alongside production companies LuckyChap and Coup d'Etat.
While filming is set to begin in Ireland and Northern Ireland in the coming weeks, Netflix has not yet announced a release date for Bad Bridgets. The project is expected to shine a spotlight on a little-known chapter of Irish history while bringing together one of the strongest Irish casts assembled for a streaming film in recent years.
