On July 29, Variety revealed legendary actor Morgan Freeman is in talks to star in Disney’s upcoming live-action film The Nutcracker and the Four Realms. Misty Copeland will star in the film with Twilight alum Mackenzie Foy.
Lasse Hallström will direct the film with a script written by Ashleigh Powell. The original Nutcracker story was released in 1816 and written by E.T.A. Hoffmann. Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and choreographers Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov turned an adaptation into the The Nutcracker ballet in 1892.
In the film, Clara’s parents give her a toy nutcracker doll for Christmas, which comes to life and battles an evil Mouse King. Freeman would play Drosselmeyer, the mysterious godfather of Clara (Foy). Copeland will play the lead ballerina.
Copeland, a principal dancer at American Ballet Theater, announced her involvement with the project earlier this month on Instagram. She wrote, “I’m thrilled to be a part of this amazing project with Disney and the wonderful Lasse Hallstrom.” She was the subject of a 2015 documentary, A Ballerina’s Tale.
