Disney Chooses 'Downton Abbey' Actress as Cinderella

Lily James will star in Kenneth Branagh's live-action interpretation of the beloved classic tale.

Disney has found someone to wear the glass slipper.

Lily James (Downton Abbey) will star as Cinderella in Disney’s live-action interpretation of the classic tale.

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Kenneth Branagh will direct, with Cate Blanchett playing the evil stepmother.

James played Lady Rose MacClare on season three of Downton Abbey and will reprise her role for season four. The British actress' film work includes playing Korrina in Warner Bros.' Wrath of the Titans.

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Emma Watson was in talks to star as the princess, but a deal never closed.

The Cinderella project was first set up at Disney in May 2010 in the wake of the studio’s success with Alice in Wonderland, the live-action adaptation of the Lewis C. Carroll book that starred Johnny Depp.

Devil Wears Prada writer Aline Brosh McKenna wrote the initial draft of the script.

James is repped by UTA in the U.S. and by Charles Collier at Tavistock Wood in the U.K.



