Jocelyn Moorhouse’s “The Dressmaker” has found an American home at Amazon Studios, reports Variety. The revenge comedy-drama stars Oscar-winner Kate Winslet as a sophisticated couturier who returns to her middle-of-nowhere hometown to reconcile with her ailing mother (Judy Davis, “The Starter Wife,” “A Passage to India”) and clear her name in a murder case.
The Australia-set film premiered at TIFF 2015 and went on to become a huge critical and commercial success in Australia when it was released theatrically that October. “The Dressmaker” debuted No. 1 at the box office and eventually earned over $14 million, and was nominated for a whopping 12 awards at the Aussie Oscars.
In an interview with Women and Hollywood, Moorhouse said she was drawn to the project because of “[t]he strong female characters, the mix of dark humor and poignant emotion, and the many surprises in the story.”
The film’s producer, Sue Maslin, previously revealed that when she pitched the project to international buyers, she was met with hesitation and told the film was “too high a risk.” To be clear, this was after Winslet — international movie star and award-show staple — had signed on. In an article published in The Sydney Morning Herald, Maslin wrote, “In a film about a woman dressmaker targeted primarily to a female audience, the exclusively male sales agents and buyers needed A-list male actors to secure the sales estimates.” (Liam Hemsworth of “The Hunger Games” ended up being cast in the role.)
Amazon Studios will be releasing “The Dressmaker” in U.S. theaters this fall, so you’ll have the chance to catch it on the big-screen.
