Shubhabrata Dutta
The Fanning sisters, Elle and Dakota Fanning, are headed to the Heart of Europe for their first feature together. The filming of the World War II drama ‘The Nightingale’ will take place in Budapest, Hungary, starting March 30, 2026. Michael Morris will direct the film, based on Dana Stevens’ adaptation of Kristin Hannah‘s bestselling historical fiction novel. The siblings are the only revealed cast members yet. The film will be released on February 12, 2027.
The story is set in the quiet village of Carriveau. It centers on Vianne Mauriac (Dakota) and her younger sister Isabelle (Elle) as they navigate their lives in Nazi-occupied France. After Vianne’s husband leaves for the Front, the Nazis invade France, killing thousands of innocents as tanks cover the land and planes hide the skies. Then, when a German captain requisitions Vianne’s home, she and her daughter are forced to share their shelter with the enemy or lose everything, while danger escalates around them. Meanwhile, Isabelle (Elle), a rebellious eighteen-year-old girl, falls for Gäetan, a partisan who believes the French can fight the Nazis from within France. Unfortunately, Gäetan betrays Isabelle, and she joins the Resistance, risking her life to save others and kill the enemy.
Elle Fanning was recently seen as Sylvie Russo, a character based on Suze Rotolo, the girlfriend of Bob Dylan, played by Timothée Chalamet, in ‘A Complete Unknown.’ Before that, she played Molly in ‘The Roads Not Taken,’ co-starring Javier Bardem, and Violet in the Netflix rom-com ‘All the Bright Places,’ opposite Justice Smith’s Finch. Her notable roles on TV include Catherine the Great in Hulu’s period satire series ‘The Great’ and Michelle Carter in the crime drama series ‘The Girl from Plainville.’ We will next see her as Rachel Kemp in Joachim Trier’s comedy drama ‘Sentimental Value,’ co-starring Renate Reinsve and Stellan Skarsgård.
Dakota Fanning was last seen as Mina in the horror flick ‘The Watchers’ and Abby Winbury in Netflix’s ‘The Perfect Couple.’ Her other recent movie and TV credits include Emma Collins in the Denzel Washington starrer ‘The Equalizer 3,’ Marge Sherwood in Netflix’s ‘Ripley,’ opposite Andrew Scott’s Tom Ripley, and Susan Elizabeth Ford in Showtime’s ‘The First Lady.’ Her upcoming projects are Bryan Bertino’s horror movie ‘Vicious’ and the Peacock thriller series ‘All Her Fault,’ based on Andrea Mara’s novel.
Michael Morris is a common name in TV shows, having directed multiple episodes of ‘Better Call Saul,’ ’13 Reasons Why,’ ‘Preacher,’ ‘Kingdom,’ and ‘Locke & Key.’ He also helmed the feature films ‘Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy’ and ‘To Leslie.’
Budapest served as the base for war movies like ‘Nuremberg,’ starring Russell Crowe, ‘Lee,’ featuring Kate Winslet, ‘A Call to Spy,’ and ‘Mudbound.’
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