Margaret Qualley, Sabrina Carpenter Join Tom Holland’s Fred Astaire Film (Exclusive)
EXCLUSIVE: Margaret Qualley and Sabrina Carpenter have joined Tom Holland in the Spider-Man star’s next project: the untitled Fred Astaire biopic in which Holland will portray the iconic actor and dancer.
The development comes nearly five years after Holland first revealed he would be leading the project.
Qualley will star as Adele Astaire, and Carpenter will star as Ginger Rogers. Fred and Adele were major stars on Broadway and London’s West End before Fred Astaire went on to be one of cinema’s greatest stars with co-star and dance partner Rogers.
Paul King will direct the film. It is being produced by Amy Pascal and Rachel O’Connor on behalf of Pascal Pictures, Ben Holden and Josh Hyams on behalf of Lightbulb Pictures and Tom Holland on behalf of Billy17. Executive Producers are Harry Holland and Will South on behalf of Billy17, Will Clarke and Andy Mayson on behalf Altitude Films and Steven Levenson. Ava Astaire McKenzie lends her support to the project. Her son, Tyler McKenzie, serves as a consultant and co-producer.
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“I am thrilled and honored to have been entrusted with telling the story of Fred Astaire and his original dance partner — his big sister Adele — to the big screen,” King said. “Fred left a timeless legacy of dance on film, most famously in his collaborations with Ginger Rogers, while Adele’s work has been lost to history; indeed, no footage of her dancing survives. The cinematic challenge of bringing to life these icons of the 20th century is one that I could not imagine without Tom Holland, Margaret Qualley and Sabrina Carpenter by my side.”
Levenson and King wrote the script, based on the book The Astaires: Fred & Adele by Kathleen Riley. Riley serves as a script and story consultant.
“I’m delighted to support this endeavor to celebrate the extraordinary careers and enduring legacy of my father and aunt, who were among the biggest musical stars of their era,” Astaire McKenzie said. “With Kathleen Riley’s seminal biography as its foundation and the creative team in place, the story of their partnership both on and off the stage is in the best care.”
McKenzie added, “Guided by the incredible filmmaking team led by director Paul King, writer Steven Levenson, producer Amy Pascal and Tom Holland, I know their legacy will be beautifully brought to life for a whole new generation.”
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Qualley is coming off of The Dog Stars, in which she starred alongside Jacob Elordi, Josh Brolin and Guy Pearce. She made her debut on HBO’s The Leftovers. Last year, she earned a Golden Globe nomination for The Substance, opposite Demi Moore, which received multiple Oscar nominations including Best Picture. She received Emmy nominations for her roles in FX’s Fosse/Verdon and Netflix’s Maid. She also starred in Ethan Coen’s Drive-Away Dolls. Additional credits include A24’s How to Make a Killing, Coen’s Honey Don’t, Yorgos Lanthimos’ Poor Things and Kinds of Kindness, Blue Moon, Sanctuary, Stars at Noon, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Native Son, Seberg and her debut film Palo Alto. She is repped by CAA, Anonymous Content, and Sloane and Offer.
Two-time Grammy-winning superstar Carpenter most recently received her first Primetime Emmy nomination in the Outstanding Variety Special (Pre-Recorded) category recognizing her work as an EP and performer on The Muppet Show. Her film credits include The Short History of the Long Road, Work It and The Hate U Give. She is repped by Paradigm, Foundation Media Partners, Volara Management, Perlman Management Group and Goodman Genow.
Holland began his career as a dancer on the West End stage, where he played the titular role from 2008-10 in the dance-driven musical about a boy born to dance, Billy Elliot The Musical, written by Lee Hall. Holland can currently be seen in Sony Pictures’ Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which is breaking box office records with a worldwide gross of more than $2 billion; and The Odyssey, which has topped $1.72 billion. He is repped by WME and Sloane Offer.
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King most recently directed Warner Bros’ Wonka, starring Timothée Chalamet. He also directed the first two Paddington films, which were critical and box office successes collectively earning nearly $500 million globally. King executive produced the third film in the series, Paddington Goes to Peru, and is writing a sequel to Wonka. He is repped by Independent Talent Group, WME, and Davis Law Group.
