Finally! A Trailer for Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper's Long-Lost Drama 'Serena'

Looks like Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper’s “lost” movie will have some kind of life after all. Serena, the film Lawrence and Cooper shot between Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle, has lingered without a release date since 2012. Now the Depression-era drama has a UK premiere date, and best of all, the instant gratification of a trailer above.

Directed by Oscar-winner Susanne Bier (In a Better World), Serena is based on the 2008 Ron Rash novel about a young married couple who build a timber empire in the North Carolina mountains in 1929. As the economy collapses, their business and relationship begin to self-destruct amid revelations of violence and betrayal. Not only does the film reunite two of Hollywood’s most popular stars, but it showcases Lawrence in a whole new kind of role: a ruthless society woman carving out a role for herself at a time when women were expected to sit on the sidelines. 

It’s baffling that Serena’s release has been delayed so long. Reportedly, Bier spent over a year in post-production, getting the movie to meet her perfectionist standards. Producers also may have felt intimidated by the success of Cooper and Lawrence’s subsequent films. Now, Bier has emerged with her own explanation: Her stars just became too popular to complete the film. “It took a long time to finish the sound and dialogue syncing because Jennifer and Bradley have been so super, super busy,” Bier told The Hollywood Reporter in a Toronto Film Festival special issue. “If things don’t finish really, really fast, they’re booked. But we’re finally done.”

Serena will premiere at the BFI London Film Festival before opening in UK theaters on Oct. 24. Bier told THR that the drama will be distributed stateside by Magnolia Pictures, but American fans will have a longer wait: There’s still no US release date.