Judi Dench in Talks to Join Kenneth Branagh’s ‘Artemis Fowl’ Movie Adaptation (EXCLUSIVE)

Judi Dench is in early talks to join Disney’s “Artemis Fowl” movie adaptation from director Kenneth Branagh.

Written by Eoin Colfer, the children’s books follow the brilliant and cunning 12-year-old eponymous criminal mastermind Artemis Fowl II, whose plot to extort gold from the secret Fairy People puts him directly in the crosshairs of some of the most dangerous creatures on earth. Over the course of the book series, Fowl becomes an antihero rather than a full-fledged villain, often working together with the fairies to stop a slew of treacherous megalomaniacs.

Irish playwright Conor McPherson is on board to pen the script. Disney recently dated the film for Aug. 9, 2019.

Harvey Weinstein and Branagh are attached to produce. Judy Hofflund will exec produce. Seth Spector is overseeing the film for The Weinstein Company, and Tendo Nagenda and Chaz Salembier are overseeing it for Disney.

Dench and Branagh most recently collaborated on “Murder on the Orient Express,” which Branagh also helmed and starred in opposite Dench. They also starred together in “The Winter’s Tale” on the West End in 2015.

The acting legend has earned strong reviews for her most recent role as Queen Victoria in the dramedy “Victoria and Abdul.” She is repped by Julian Belfrage and Associates.

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