Andrew Scott, Fresh Off Emmy Nomination, Set To Star In Studiocanal & Working Title D-Day Movie ‘Pressure’ About The Historic Normandy Landings

EXCLUSIVE: Fresh off his Emmy nomination for Ripley, the in-demand Andrew Scott has been set to lead cast in Studiocanal and Working Title‘s upcoming D-Day movie Pressure, which we revealed earlier this summer.

In the true story, BAFTA winner Scott, also coming off rave reviews for All Of Us Strangers, is set to play Group Captain James Stagg, the Allies’ Chief Meteorologist whose job it was to inform Supreme Commander General Eisenhower of weather conditions that would make-or-break their Normandy invasion. The decision-making was critical in the fate of the war and the course of history.

Anthony Maras (Hotel Mumbai) will direct the ticking-clock thriller, which is due to start shooting in the UK this September. Additional casting is underway, with Studiocanal handling world sales.

Olivier award-winner David Haig and Maras wrote the screenplay based on Haig’s critically lauded play, which ran in London’s West End before going on to be performed for the late Queen Elizabeth II and world leaders to mark the D-Day 75th anniversary in 2019.

The official synopsis reads: “In the seventy two hours leading up to D-Day, all the pieces are in place except for one key element—the British weather. Britain’s chief meteorological officer James Stagg (Andrew Scott) is called upon to deliver the most consequential forecast in history, locking him into a tense standoff with the entire Allied leadership. The wrong conditions could devastate the largest ever seaborne invasion, while any delay risks German intelligence catching on. With only his trusted aide Captain Kay Summersby to confide in, and haunted by a catastrophic D-Day rehearsal, the final decision rests with Supreme Allied Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower. With only hours to go, the fate of the war and the lives of millions hang in the balance.”

Haig’s play explores the personal and military stresses on Stagg and how tensions grew between the teams with different weather forecasts for the date of the proposed D-Day. The film will concentrate on the pressure-cooker of the decision-making but also capture the scale of the landings.

Studiocanal previously had commercial and critical success with WWII story The Imitation Game while Working Title similarly scored box office and Oscar recognition with WWII film Darkest Hour.

Scott, who won a BAFTA for Sherlock, was recently cast in Rian Johnson’s Wake Up Dead Man and is in post in Netflix’s action-comedy Back In Action.