Looks like Daisy Ridley isn’t quite done with Disney just yet.Disney+is working on a movie based on Gertrude “Trudy” Ederle, the first woman to swim across the English Channel, and wants Ridley to star. The film,Young Woman and the Sea, will be based on the book of the same name by Glenn Stout.
Assuming negotiations succeed, Ridley will portray Ederle, who made history as the first woman to swim the entire 21 miles of the English Channel in 1926. While not the first person to make the journey (five men had completed it prior), she was the first of many women who had competed to be the first non-male.
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Aside from Ridley, Disney also plans to bring in Joachim Rønning to direct and Jeff Nathanson to write the project. Rønning is known for directing Disney’s recentMaleficent: Mistress of Evilas well as 2017’sPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. Meanwhile, Nathanson is perhaps most notable for penning the screenplay of 2002’sCatch Me If You Can, as well asRush Hour 2andRush Hour 3. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who was involved in all thePirates of the Caribbeanfilms, will produce.
Ederle’s story is a rather lesser-known underdog tale, and this film aims to bring her accomplishments to light after nearly 100 years of relative obscurity. She was a driven woman who had already set a record by swimming 22 miles from New York to New Jersey, not to mention winning the gold in the 1924Olympics. Creating a 2-piece swimsuit (which was ahead of its time) and cleverly sealing her goggles with candle wax, she accomplished the feat at the English Channel and returned to a hero’s welcome. Though, as mentioned before, this milestone unfortunately faded quickly into the back pages of history soon after.
Ridley seems to be proving that she won’t be tied to her role in theStar Warsfilms like some may have expected. WhileYoung Woman and the Seamay not end up being a breakout project for those involved, the talent behind it as well as Ridley’s other recent projects such as 2017’sMurder on the Orient Expressand the upcomingChaos Walkingwith Tom Holland show a rather high-shooting trend that hopefully continues along with her career.
Production onYoung Woman and the Seaplans to begin in the second quarter of 2021. Perhaps if the film is successful enough, it could inspire others to make more of its sort, shining a light on those long forgotten, or even those who never got therecognition they may have deservedin the first place.
