'Veep' creator's 'David Copperfield' film finds distributor

Aug. 22 (UPI) -- Fox Searchlight announced Thursday that they had acquired the North American distribution rights to Armando Iannucci's latest film, The Personal History of David Copperfield ahead of its Toronto International Film Festival premiere.

Based on Charles Dickens' David Copperfield, the film stars Dev Patel as David, Tilda Swinton as Betsey Trotwood, Hugh Laurie as Mr. Dick, Peter Capaldi as Mr. Micawber, Ben Whishaw as Uriah Heep, Aneurin Barnard as Steerforth, Daisy May Cooper, Morfydd Clark as Dor, Benedict Wong as Mr. Wickfield, Gwendoline Christie as Jane Murdstone, Anthony Welsh as Ham, Sophie McShera as Mrs. Crupp and Rosalind Eleazar as Agnes. Paul Whitehouse and Daisy May Cooper also play roles.

The Personal History of David Copperfield is the third film for Veep creator Iannucci, following In the Loop and The Death of Stalin. Iannuci directed, co-wrote with Simon Blackwell and produced.

"The Personal History of David Copperfield masterfully tells the story of Charles Dickens' remarkable character David Copperfield, giving the tale new life for a cosmopolitan age with a diverse ensemble cast of stage and screen actors from across the world," Searchlight's press release reads. "Iannucci and co-writer Simon Blackwell have crafted a story of a man whose rogue spirit carries him through a colorful life of poverty and opulence. The film follows David, a burgeoning young writer, from orphaned infancy to adulthood as he befriends a collection of eccentric characters on a journey of love, acceptance and self-discovery in Victorian England."

The TIFF premiere is set for Sept. 5 and the film will also open the BFI London Film Festival on Oct. 2. Searchlight will release The Personal History of David Copperfield in 2020.