Irish director Pat O’Connor is to helm the Michael Morpurgo adaptation ‘Private Peaceful’.
The World War One-set work follows young Tommo Peaceful as he grows up in Devon before being sent to the trenches of Belgium with his brother Charlie.
Tommo will be played by George MacKay (Defiance, Peter Pan) and the younger version of Tommo to be played by Samuel Bottomley (Tyrannosaur), with Jack O’Connell (Skins) and Hero Fiennes Tiffin (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince), taking on the roles of older and younger Charlie. The screenplay was written by Simon Reade (What You Will).
Supporting cast include Alexandra Roach (The Iron Lady), Richard Griffiths (Withnail and I) and Frances De La Tour (The Book of Eli).
The Irish director is known for his work on the Maeve Binchy adaptation ‘Circle of Friends’, ‘Sweet November’ and the IFTA nominated feature ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’.
The screenplay for ‘Private Peaceful’ was written by Simon Reade and was adapted from Michael Morpurgo’s novel.
The feature is expected to begin filming this week in locations including Ipswich and Suffolk. Guy de Beaujeu and Simon Reade are producing for Fluidity Films, with Exile Media distributing in the UK. Irish distributors are TBC.
