In 2011, Nora Ephron signed on to adapt ITV’s 2008 period rom-com-tweaking miniseries **Lost In Austen as a film for Sony. Work on the project was halted by Ephron’s sad death in June 2012, but Portlandia co-creator Carrie Brownstein will now finish her scrip{
The series, written by Guy Andrews, followed Amanda Price (Jemima Rooper), a lifelong Jane Austen fan who finds her mundane London reality suddenly swapping places with her favourite author’s storyline from Pride and Prejudice. After discovering that a small door in her flat leads to Elizabeth Bennet (Gemma Arterton)’s world, the two women trade places, only to find that the switch makes things more complicated for both of them.
Brownstein, the rocker-turned-writer and actress on the show that affectionately spoofs the hipster haven of Portland, will make her film-writing debut with the screenplay.
“Carrie is smart and funny and original and the project is very lucky to have her,” said Sam Mendes, a producer on the film, in a statement carried by Screen International.
In the years since Sony and co. began work on the project, Pride And Prejudice-riffing spoof Austenland arrived and failed to woo the box office, and all involved will no doubt be hoping this has a better chance. There’s no director attached yet, however, so for now it’ll continue making its way through development, where it will be running alongside the newly revived Pride And Prejudice And Zombies, which is also moving once again.