Emily Watson To Lead ‘John Daniel’, Dominic Cooke’s Drama About Unlikely Friendship Between English Woman And Baby Gorilla

Emily Watson (Hamnet, Chernobyl) has been cast in the lead role in Dominic Cooke’s British drama John Daniel.

She will play Alyce Cunningham, a fiercely independent English woman who strikes up an unlikely friendship with a baby gorilla in the aftermath of the First World War.

Based on a true story, the screenplay was written by Alexi Kaye Campbell (Woman in Gold) and was inspired by original home movie footage and photographs recorded by locals in Uley, Gloucestershire between 1918 and 1922.

Per the synopsis: “In 1918, the Cotswolds village of Uley is still raw from the losses of WWI, and Alyce Cunningham has built a solitary life behind a wall of wit and stoicism. That changes when her reckless nephew impulsively rescues a baby gorilla from the window of a London department store and, ignoring her protests, leaves her no option but to take him in.

“Mischievous and endlessly curious, John Daniel, as she reluctantly names him, slowly wins her over, and as he becomes part of village life, from the school classroom to the village pub, he brings joy back to the grieving community. When fear and suspicion threaten to drive him out, Alyce must decide how far she will go to protect the animal who has opened her heart.”

The film is a Genesius Pictures production, in association with Edward Film Company. Debbie Gray is producing. The film is currently in pre-production, with principal photography scheduled to begin in the UK in mid-2027. It will combine motion capture with VFX, with visual effects by Axio World, led by Loris Mantello and Maoris Creantor.

Watson is represented by Independent Talent Group and UTA. Cooke is represented by UTA and Casarotto Ramsay & Associates.