Matthew Rhys to play Mr. Darcy in 'Death Comes to Pemberley'

LONDON, May 27 (UPI) -- Matthew Rhys, Anna Maxwell Martin and Matthew Goode are to star in a British television version of P.D. James' book "Death Comes to Pemberley," Deadline said.

The 2011 mystery novel picks up six years after the events of Jane Austen's classic 19th century romance "Pride and Prejudice." The miniseries version will feature Rhys as Fitzwilliam Darcy, Martin as Elizabeth Bennet and Goode as George Wickham.

Deadline said the television adaptation was written by Juliette Towhidi and will be directed by Daniel Percival.

"Exciting as it is, one of the challenges of a part such as Darcy are the comparisons that will be drawn to those who've institutionalized him in the past. The beauty of 'Pemberley' is that it is an entirely new and different Darcy six years on," Rhys said. "And also, I don't have to appear from a lake in a white shirt and breeches."

Colin Firth played Mr. Darcy in a beloved 1995 miniseries adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice," as well as Mark Darcy in "Bridget Jones's Diary" and "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason," which were contemporary versions of Austen's tale.

Matthew Macfadyen also played Darcy in a 2005 big-screen adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice," while Elliot Cowan portrayed the character in "Lost in Austen," a 2008 TV miniseries about a modern woman transported to Regency-era England.