- Published
Daisy Edgar-Jones has been well cast in her new film.
asserted
Jones → publish → film
She plays Elinor, the rational elder sister in Sense and Sensibility, opposite the younger, more romantic sister Marianne.
asserted
She → play → sister
Speaking to the BBC, Edgar-Jones says that in her personal life, she really is like her character.
asserted
she → speak → character
"When it comes to love, I think I am very much more Elinor in every sort of way," she says.
asserted
she → come → way
"I definitely lead a lot with my head and try and push aside, bury my emotion.
asserted
I → lead → emotion
But she notes that one of the joys of the film is seeing Elinor learn to enjoy a "wilder, passionate side" of herself.
asserted
Elinor → note → herself
"And I feel like I learnt to do that too," she says.
asserted
she → feel → that
Best known for starring in hit TV series Normal People with Paul Mescal, Edgar-Jones, 28, is now taking on a lead role in the latest adaptation of Jane Austen's book.
asserted
Jones → know → book
Ahead of its release, she’s been talking to me about whether we really need another Sense and Sensibility film (spoiler: yes.
asserted
we → talk → film
She also told me why young people today can still see themselves in Jane Austen's stories - and gave me her take on whether her friend and former co-star Mescal should be the next James Bond.
asserted
friend → tell → take
The new film, directed by Georgia Oakley, follows the Dashwood sisters as they navigate their way through love, loss and societal expectations, following the death of their father.
asserted
they → direct → father
When I meet Edgar-Jones at a hotel in central London, I ask her whether there was ever a temptation to make it more "2026".
"
asserted
it → meet → her
It does feel very much like it's honouring the period," she agrees, "but I think there's a freshness to the filmmaking that I think is really beautiful".
asserted
I → feel → filmmaking
She is starring alongside Esmé Creed-Miles, 26, who plays her sister Marianne.
asserted
who → star → sister
Together, the two sisters' different approaches to life are characterised as "sense" (Elinor) and "sensibility" (Marianne).
Creed-Miles is also well cast, it seems.
asserted
it → characterise → sense
"I'm more like Marianne [than Elinor], yeah, which is annoying sometimes," she laughs.
asserted
she → laugh → Elinor
Sense and Sensibility has been adapted for screen countless times before - including the hit 1995 film starring Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet.
asserted
Sense → adapt → Thompson
Edgar-Jones loves that version (“one of my favourite films of all time”) but also feels there's room to tell Austen’s classic tale again.
asserted
Jones → love → tale
"Her stories are something that fascinate us still today,” she says.
asserted
she → fascinate → us
It was also easy for her and Creed-Mills to build the sisterly rapport on screen, as they previously worked together as teenagers on the 2018 film Pond Life.
asserted
they → build → film
“We had a real laugh," Creed-Mills says of their time on that film.
asserted
Mills → have → film
"We would have sleepovers every night and watch Love Island."
asserted
We → have → Island
For Edgar-Jones, the theme of sisterhood is something that stuck with her from Sense and Sensibility - despite her being an only child in real life.
asserted
her → stick → life
“I've heard a lot of people say that after watching the film, it either makes them want a sister or to ring up their sister and say like, ‘Hey, I love you,’ and I think that's really special.
asserted
that → hear → you
Jane Austen seems to be everywhere right now.
asserted
Austen → seem → ?
Last year marked the 250th anniversary of her birth and, in recent years, we've enjoyed two BBC TV series, Miss Austen and The Other Bennet Sister, the West End's Clueless musical (based on the cult 90s teen film adaptation of Emma), and Ava Pickett's modern stage adaptation of Emma.
asserted
we → mark → Emma
"She has an incredible way of articulating the female experience," she says.
"
asserted
she → have → experience
Austen also wrote about the sort of dating behaviour that people complain about on TikTok (like situationships and ghosting), before terms like that had even been invented.
asserted
terms → write → that
Does that help Gen Z audiences relate to her, I ask?
asserted
I → help → her
"Well, massively," replies Edgar-Jones.
asserted
Jones → reply → ?
"We still have the same human heart as we did 200 years ago.
asserted
we → have → heart
Our capacity to love and feel heartbreak, and that early first love feeling, is something that we all experience in various ways.
asserted
we → love → ways
"And so yes, I think definitely the trials and tribulations of the two women [Elinor and Marianne] as they navigate life, love and all that becomes as you grow up, definitely is so relatable to all generations.
asserted
you → think → generations
"These women are very relatable," agrees Creed-Mills.
asserted
Mills → agree → ?
"I don't know if seeing a movie is going to fix everything, but it might make you feel a little bit less alone in some of the things you're feeling."
uncertain
you → know → things
Edgar-Jones shot to fame during the pandemic with her role in Normal People.
asserted
Jones → shoot → People
Based on Sally Rooney's novel, the BBC Three drama charted the on-off relationship of teenagers Marianne and Connell, played by Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal.
asserted
drama → base → Jones
The pair have remained close (a few years ago, Edgar-Jones told me Mescal was "one of my all-time best friends") - and both are now successful actors.
asserted
both → remain → friends
Edgar-Jones has since starred in Twisters and Where The Crawdads Sing, while Mescal was in Gladiator II, Hamnet and will be in the Beatles films.
asserted
Mescal → star → films
Recently, Page Six claimed Mescal was on the audition list to be the next James Bond, external.
asserted
Mescal → claim → list
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
