Jack Lowden has been cast as Mr Darcy in Netflix's new adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, appearing alongside Emma Corrin as Elizabeth Bennet and Olivia Colman as Mrs Bennet in first-look images released by the streaming service.
The 36-year-old Scottish actor, who has been tipped as a possible future James Bond, cuts a commanding figure striding across the countryside with his shirt sleeves rolled up beneath a dark waistcoat. His open collar, windswept hair and stern expression mark a departure from the Darcys previously played by Colin Firth and Matthew Macfadyen.
The Crown star Emma Corrin, 30, looks equally windswept as Elizabeth Bennet in a burgundy empire-line dress and embroidered gold jacket, with their short curls left loose around their face.
The rest of the cast
Netflix has confirmed the six-part drama will be released on December 3. The first-look images also showed the extensive cast assembled for the production.
Olivia Colman, 52, beams as the excitable Mrs Bennet, while Rufus Sewell, 58, appears weary as her sardonic husband, reclining in an armchair in an ornate patterned coat.
Newcomer Hopey Parish is making her screen debut as the studious Mary Bennet, pictured clutching sheet music at the family piano, while Rhea Norwood, 25, and Hollie Avery play her younger sisters Lydia and Kitty.
Daryl McCormack, 33, appears as the charming and wealthy Mr Bingley, while there are also first glimpses of Jamie Demetriou, 38, as the pompous clergyman Mr Collins and Louis Partridge, 23, as the dashing but deceitful militia officer George Wickham, dressed in a striking scarlet uniform.
Who wrote and directed it
The adaptation was written by Everything I Know About Love author Dolly Alderton, 38, and directed by Euros Lyn, whose credits include Heartstopper and Doctor Who.
Alderton has described Austen's 1813 novel as "the blueprint for romantic comedy" and said the series would find "both familiar and fresh ways" of bringing it to the screen.
Lowden has formidable predecessors in the role. Firth's portrayal in the BBC's 1995 adaptation, particularly his celebrated emergence from a lake in a clinging white shirt, turned him into a national heartthrob. Macfadyen later starred opposite Keira Knightley, 41, in the acclaimed 2005 film.
Bond speculation continues
The new images come amid mounting speculation that Lowden could also inherit the role of 007. He already has experience in the world of espionage through his role as MI5 agent River Cartwright in the acclaimed Apple TV series Slow Horses.
His co-star Gary Oldman, 68, recently fuelled the Bond rumours by suggesting that Daniel Craig's successor had been chosen and saying his "fingers are crossed" for Lowden.
The actor, whose film credits include Dunkirk and Mary Queen Of Scots, is believed to be among several names under consideration, including Callum Turner, 36, and Wuthering Heights star Jacob Elordi, 29.
The next Bond film will be directed by Dune filmmaker Denis Villeneuve and written by Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight. It will be the first since Craig made his final appearance as 007 in No Time To Die in 2021.
