Millie Bobby Brown’s New Netflix WWII Film ‘Nineteen Steps’ Welcomes Director Tom Hooper
Anthony McCarten, a four-time Oscar nominee recognized for his work on films such as Bohemian Rhapsody and The Theory of Everything, will adapt the screenplay for a new film currently in development. Millie Bobby Brown, Jake Bongiovi, and Bobby Brown are producing under the PCMA banner, alongside Jonathan Eirich from Rideback, with plans for Brown to star. Nick Reynolds will serve as executive producer for Rideback.
The film adaptation is based on Nineteen Steps, a novel that became a New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller when it was published by William Morrow in September 2023. Co-written by Brown and Kathleen McGurl, the World War II narrative centers on Nellie Morris, an 18-year-old girl from East London’s Bethnal Green. The story explores wartime challenges such as bombings, rationing, separation from loved ones, and the blossoming romance between Nellie and an American airman named Ray. The book is set against the tragic backdrop of the Bethnal Green Tube disaster, one of the UK’s worst civilian tragedies during the war, where 173 individuals lost their lives in a crush while seeking refuge from an air raid.
Watch on Deadline
Tom Hooper, an Oscar-winning director known for The King’s Speech and the adaptations of Les Misérables and The Danish Girl, will helm this project. Most recently, he was announced as the director for Photograph 51, featuring Natalie Portman as Rosalind Franklin, the pioneering British scientist recognized for revealing DNA’s structure. This project was disclosed during last year’s Cannes Market. In addition to his film work, Hooper has directed acclaimed series such as His Dark Materials and John Adams. His representation includes CAA, Independent Talent in the UK, and Warren Dern.
Brown is also set to appear in upcoming Netflix projects, including Enola Holmes 3 and Just Picture It, the latter of which is a college romantic comedy directed by Lee Toland Krieger.
Following the success of Disney’s Lilo & Stitch, which grossed over $1 billion globally last year, Rideback is involved with other notable projects, including Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender, which will launch its second season later this year, as well as the forthcoming dance comedy feature Best of the Best.
