Two-time Golden Globe winner Gillian Anderson (The Crown) and BAFTA and Golden Globe nominee Rebecca Hall (The Beauty) are set to lead the cast of The Portrait, a psychological thriller written and directed by Sara Colangelo (The Kindergarten Teacher).
The film will be produced by Talia Kleinhendler and Osnat Handelsman Keren of Pie Films, the production company behind The Lost Daughter and The Kindergarten Teacher, alongside Francesca Cualbu of Italy’s The Apartment, known for Maria.
Based on the novel by Ilaria Bernardini, whose upcoming project includes Ibelin, The Portrait is described as a seductive tale of deception, obsession and forbidden desire.
Anderson will play Valeria, an internationally acclaimed writer who has devoted her life to her career and her secret, long-term relationship with Martín, a wealthy businessman. When Martín suddenly falls ill and becomes inaccessible, Valeria’s carefully constructed world begins to unravel.
Desperate to reconnect with him and remain by his side during his final days, Valeria approaches his wife, Isla (Hall), an artist, and commissions her to paint a portrait of her. The request becomes an elaborate means of infiltrating Martín’s private world, drawing Valeria into the intimate dynamics of his home and family.
What follows is a tense psychological game as the two women find themselves increasingly entangled, their lives and loyalties colliding within the family’s grand London townhouse.
Colangelo expressed her enthusiasm for the project, saying: “I am beyond excited to be partnering with Gillian and Rebecca.”
She added that the film continues her exploration of moral ambiguity and female transgression, particularly the ways in which women exercise power and subvert expectations.
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