The Dashwood sisters are officially coming to theaters in less than a year. Focus Features has revealed that the new star-studded adaptation of Jane Austen‘s debut novel, Sense and Sensibility, will arrive on the big screen in the U.S. on September 11, 2026. Afterwards, U.K. theaters will receive the film starting on September 25. Directed by Georgia Oakley, the film is set to star Daisy Edgar-Jones as the eldest of the three sisters, Elinor, with Esmé Creed-Miles sharing the screen as Marianne Dashwood, roles once played by Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet, respectively.

Published under the byline “By a Lady” before her other pitvotal work in Pride and Prejudice and Emma, among other things, Sense and Sensibility follows the Dashwood sisters as their family is forced to abandon their estate in Sussex for a low-rent cottage in Devonshire following their father’s death. As they navigate financial uncertainty, the eldest sisters begin new journeys in love, experiencing passion, heartbreak, and constraint under the expectations of 18th-century England. Both Elinor and Marianne are tried in different ways by their respective suitors, like the dashing John Willoughby, Colonel Brandon, and Edward Ferrars, all while having to juggle the ever-changing circumstances around them. This will be far from the first take on Austen‘s novel, following particularly in the footsteps of the aforementioned Thompson and Winslet film from 1995 directed by Ang Lee.

Adapting Austen‘s work will be a big challenge for what will mark just Oakley’s second feature. She burst onto the screen in 2022 with her BAFTA-nominated debut film, Blue Jean, starring Rosy McEwan. For Sense and Sensibility, she’ll have an experienced team around her, including Focus and producer Working Title, who have previously teamed on two prior Austen adaptations — the Oscar-nominated 2005 iteration of Pride & Prejudice and 2020’s EMMA., led by Anya Taylor-Joy. Bestselling author Diana Reed also penned the screenplay Oakley is directing from. The film is rounded out by a strong cast around Edgar-Jones and Creed-Miles, including Caitríona Balfe as the Dashwoods’ mother, Frank Dillane as Willoughby, Herbert Nordrum as Brandon, George MacKay as Ferrars, Bodhi Rae Breathnach as the youngest Dashwood, Margaret, and Fiona Shaw as Mrs. Jennings.

The Original ‘Sense and Sensibility’ Is Returning to Theaters Soon

For anyone who can’t wait to see the latest adaptation of Austen‘s debut work, the 1995 version directed by Lee with a screenplay adapted by Thompson, is coming back to theaters in the meantime to celebrate its 30th anniversary. Screenings of the film will be held on December 14, 16, and 17 courtesy of Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Entertainment. It’s a chance to re-experience the Oscar-winning classic on the big screen with a cast that also starred Alan Rickman and Hugh Grant as the Dashwood sisters’ respective suitors, Brandon and Ferrars. Not only did Thompson earn an Oscar as a writer, but she and Winslet scored acting nominations and the film was up for Best Picture.

Oakley‘s Sense and Sensibility will arrive in theaters in the U.S. on September 11, 2026 and in the U.K. on September 25.

via Collider