A yet untold story of Irish immigrants in America is now getting the spotlight. “Bad Bridgets” the Irish period thriller from “Kneecap” director Rich Peppiatt, has added a starry ensemble of names as it gears up to start filming in Northern Ireland in July.
BAFTA nominee Emilia Jones (CODA, The Running Man) and Alison Oliver (Wuthering Heights, Conversations with Friends) are the two leads, and are joined by Academy Award nominee Colin Farrell (“Banshees of Inisherin,” “In Bruges”), Academy Award nominee Steve Coogan (“Philomena,” “Legends”), Charlie Heaton (“Stranger Things,” “Industry”), Domhnall Gleeson (“Ex Machina,” “Echo Valley”), Himesh Patel (“Yesterday,” “The Odyssey”), Niamh Algar (“The Iris Affair,” “Mary & George”) and Simone Kirby (“Kneecap,” “His Dark Materials”).
Inspired by the book “Bad Bridget: Crime, Mayhem, and the Lives of Irish Emigrant Women” by Elaine Farrell and Leanne McCormick, “Bad Bridget” is set in the 19th century against the backdrop of a famine-ravaged Ireland and focuses on two sisters who make a treacherous journey to America to escape an abusive father, poverty and hunger. Once in New York, they join the ranks of other Irish women, the so-called “Bridgets,” creating mayhem in the city.
The logline reads “When a mysterious letter offering escape leads a young Irish woman to 19th-century New York, she’s pulled into the unruly world of the Bridgets, and mayhem follows in her wake.”
The book was optioned by Peppiatt and his “Kneecap” producer Trevor Birney in 2025, with the two producing alongside LuckyChap for their Coup d’Etat Films banner. Cáit Collins exec produces.
BAFTA-winning cinematographer Ryan Kernaghan (“Kneecap,” “Trespasses), Oscar and BAFTA-winning production designer James Price (“Poor Things”) and Oscar and BAFTA-winning costume designer (“Frankenstein”) make up the production team as of late. The film was developed with support from Queen’s University Belfast and is being produced with support from Northern Ireland Screen.
This exciting film is set to release on Netflix.
