News > Keira Knightley in Talks to Play "My Fair Lady"

British actress Keira Knightley is considering playing Eliza Doolittle in a remake of "My Fair Lady," originally directed by George Cukor, based on a musical by Alan Jay Lerner, which in turn was based on George Bernard Shaw's 1913 play "Pygmalion." There's no word yet on a supporting cast or director, but Duncan Kenworthy of "Love, Actually" is producing along with Cameron Mackintosh. The film follows a lowly Cockney flower girl who is given a complete physical and vocal makeover by Professor Henry Higgins, transforming her into a refined English lady.

According to Variety, "While it's being called an update, the film will use the tuner's score and retain its 1912 setting. Where possible, Kenworthy and Mackintosh intend to shoot the film on location in the original London settings of Covent Garden, Drury Lane, Tottenham Court Road, Wimpole Street and the Ascot racecourse." This is a sharp contrast from the original film, which was shot entirely on the Warner Brothers lot.

Though not from my favorite genre, I don't think I could be called an anti-musical snob. That said, the 1964 version bored me to tears. And Doug Belgrad of Columbia is saying he wants to see the characters fleshed out more? I just hope that doesn't translate into a longer film; Cukor's was nearly three hours long! Keira Knightley is probably good casting though. She's only 23, and Audrey Hepburn at 35 was really pushing the limits of what could be considered a "flower girl."

-David Morgan