Bond girl Eva Green leads cast of BBC’s New Zealand period drama ‘The Luminaries’

The BBC has announced the cast for its upcoming adaptation of The Luminaries.

Adapted by novelist Eleanor Catton from her award-winning novel, the six-part mini-series begins filming in November in New Zealand.

Described as “an epic story of love, murder and revenge,” The Luminaries is set on the Wild West Coast of New Zealand’s South Island during the 1860s gold rush.

Eva Green (Casino Royale, Penny Dreadful) is playing Lydia Wells, alongside Eve Hewson (Robin Hood, Bridge of Spies) as Anna Wetherell and Marton Csokas (Lord of the Rings) as Francis Carver.

The official synopsis reads: “The story follows defiant young adventurer Anna Wetherell, who has sailed from Britain to New Zealand to begin a new life. There she meets the radiant Emery Staines, an encounter that triggers a strange kind of magic that neither can explain.

“As they fall in love, driven together and apart by fateful coincidence, these star-crossed lovers begin to wonder: do we make our fortunes, or do our fortunes make us?”

Eva Green commented: “Eleanor has written a series of brilliant screenplays. I loved her original novel and it’s so exciting that her own screen adaptation reveals yet more exquisite material.”

Screenplay writer and novelist Eleanor Catton added: “I’ve had tremendous fun adapting this novel for the screen and feel incredibly lucky to be working with such fantastic people across different art forms.

“Writing a novel is a solitary business, but writing for the screen is emphatically collaborative, and to see the world of The Luminaries enlarged and enriched in ways that go far beyond the scope of my own imagination has been a humbling and hugely exhilarating experience.”

Catton was the youngest ever recipient of the Man Booker Prize when it won in 2013.

The Luminaries will air in the UK on BBC Two and in New Zealand on TVNZ1.

Eleanor Catton’s novel is available on Amazon.