Jennifer Lawrence will be starring in and producing Burial Rites, an adaptation of Hannah Kent’s 2013 novel of the same name that was based on the last death sentence carried out in Iceland in 1830, Variety reported. The film will be directed by Luca Guadagnino, whose Call Me By Your Name received four nominations including best picture for the 75th Golden Globe Awards and is a considered a front-runner for the Academy Awards.
Burial Rites will follow the story of Agnes Magnusdottir (to be played by Lawrence) who is sentenced to death for murdering two men at a farmstead she worked at, and burning down their house. While awaiting the confirmation of her sentence, she forms new bonds and reflects on what drove her to murder. More details of the project are under wraps.
Magnusdottir was beheaded along with teenager Fridrik Sigurdsson for her role in the 1828 murders. The severity of the punishment has since been debated, with claims that Magnusdottir had been abused by her employee. Their story also inspired the 1995 Icelandic movie Agnes, directed by Egill Edvardsson.
Before Burial Rites hits the screens, Guadagnino’s next release is a remake of the 1977 horror film Suspiria and Rio, a thriller starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Jake Gyllenhaal. Both movies are expected to come out in 2018.
The Oscar-award winning Lawrence, meanwhile, will be seen next year in the spy thriller Red Sparrow and X-Men: Dark Phoenix.