Cate Blanchett’s Dirty Films has set in motion a feature-film take on Kip Williams’s multimedia staging of “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” the company having quietly acquired screen rights to the hit play in April 2024. The plan resurfaced this week after Williams’ star, Sarah Snook, won the Tony Award for Best Actress for her 26-character performance and confirmed conversations about translating the production to film.
Williams, who is drafting the screenplay, aims to preserve the play’s live-camera choreography while expanding Oscar Wilde’s story for cinema; Dirty Films partners Cate Blanchett and Andrew Upton are producing alongside Curio Pictures. Snook told reporters she has “no idea how you’d translate something this intricate to film but would love to help,” leaving her casting open while praising Blanchett’s support for experimental theatre.
The stage adaptation debuted at Sydney Theatre Company in 2020, reached London’s Theatre Royal Haymarket in 2024 and is now extended on Broadway through 29 June after near-sell-out demand. Its blend of real-time video and prerecorded footage attracted critical acclaim and earned Snook Olivier, Drama Desk and Tony honours, fuelling interest from studios seeking prestige literary properties.
Wilde’s 1890 novel has already spawned multiple films, from MGM’s Oscar-winning 1945 adaptation to Oliver Parker’s 2009 “Dorian Gray,” yet none has attempted the meta-theatrical structure Williams introduced. Entertainment lawyer Helen Watts told Screenhub that rights packages for single-performer vehicles can be “surprisingly bankable,” though she cautioned that union rules on digital doubles could add cost.
Production insiders say filming could begin in Australia in late 2026 if financing closes this autumn, but no director or distributor has been announced and Blanchett has not ruled out an onscreen cameo. Analysts at Ampere Analysis track a steady rise in literary adaptations, arguing that prestige titles with built-in audiences help mitigate streaming volatility. Dirty Films’ recent slate has leaned on Australian stories such as the series “Stateless,” signalling the company’s aim to pair home-grown talent with global distributors.
