Penélope Cruz Leads Isabel Coixet’s ‘The Days of Abandonment’ in Resurrected Elena Ferrante Adaptation

Penélope Cruz is taking on an Elena Ferrante adaptation.

IndieWire can confirm the “Ferrari” actress is reuniting with “Elegy” director Isabel Coixet for the adaptation of Ferrante’s 2002 “The Days of Abandonment,” which followed Olga, an Italian woman, who loses her grasp on reality after her husband of 15 years abruptly leaves her for another woman.

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The big screen adaptation will instead be set in America, as Variety reported, with the script penned by Laurence Coriat (“Summer in Genoa”). “The Days of Abandonment” will be produced by Lotus, a unit of Raffaella and Andrea Leone’s Leone Film Group, and Cruz’s production banner Moonlyon. Cruz’s brother Edu Cruz will also produce along with Marco Perego through their Nimoa Entertainment company.

Director Coixet has recently helmed “Un Amor,” “My Life Without Me,” and “The Secret Life of Words.”

Author Ferrante’s novels have been adapted for the big and small screens, with Maggie Gyllenhaal making her directorial debut with Oscar-nominated “The Lost Daughter” and Netflix launching series “The Lying Life of Adults” as well as HBO debuting “My Brilliant Friend.”

“The Lying Life of Adults” premiered earlier this year with Ferrante among the series’ screenwriters. Edoardo De Angelis directed.

A TV adaptation “The Days of Abandonment” was first set to star Natalie Portman and film in Sydney, Australia. Portman dropped out of the project in August 2021; the Academy Award winner was also slated to executive produce. Maggie Betts adapted the novel and was set to direct and also executive produce, along with Ferrante and HBO Films. Mary-Louise Parker and Rafe Spall were going to additionally star.

“Due to unforeseen personal reasons, Natalie Portman has stepped down from HBO Films’ ‘Days of Abandonment’ prior to the start of filming,” an official press statement read at the time. “Unfortunately, the production will not move forward. We are very sorry we won’t be able to bring this beautiful story to the screen with our talented writer-director and cast. We send our sincere thanks to our cast, producers, and crew for all their passion and hard work.”

“The Days of Abandonment” was also made into an Italian 2006 film starring Margherita Buy and Luca Zingaretti.

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