Fresh from his concluding villainous outing as Lord Voldemort in Harry Potter , Ralph Fiennes is plotting his next directorial move.
The Invisible Woman will tell the story of Dickens' secret 13-year love affair with Ellen Terney, affectionately known as Nelly by the author.
Busying himself in Sam Mendes' upcoming Bond 23 and set to play Prospero on stage in The Tempest , Fiennes seems keen to rule himself out of playing the author, so the rumour mill has churned out names such as Daniel Day-Lewis and Ben Whishaw.
As for the leading lady to portray Nelly, who was half the age of the celebrated author, the cream of the current crop of young female talent is being courted.
Carey Mulligan is said to be the front runner, although commitments to Baz Luhrmann's new adaptation of The Great Gatsby opposite Leonardo DiCaprio may see her schedule packed.
Fiennes has also been said to have met with Imogen Poots, Abbie Cornish and Felicity Jones, so it'll be intriguing to see who wins out.
