Branagh to Direct and Star in Murder on the Orient Express

Kenneth Branagh has been announced as the director of an exciting new remake of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express. The British star will also take on the role of the famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot.

Christie’s novel, published in 1934, revolves around a murder on board the famous train on its journey through central Europe. Poirot investigates the case – in which a number of passengers could potentially be the murderer.

Producers for the Fox movie are Ridley Scott, Simon Kinberg, Mark Gordon and Branagh. Michael Schaefer and Aditya Sood are also linked to the production.

Michael Green is writing the screenplay, with Steve Asbell overseeing the production for Fox.

Previous big screen incarnations of Murder on the Orient Express include the iconic Sidney Lumet 1974 movie, which starred Albert Finney as Poirot. The all-star cast of suspects included Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Jacqueline Bisset, Colin Blakely, Sean Connery, John Gielgud, Anthony Perkins, Vanessa Redgrave and Michael York. It was a huge commercial success and nominated for six Academy Awards, with Bergman winning her third Oscar.

Agatha Christie's great grandson and Chairman of Agatha Christie Ltd, James Prichard, said, “The extraordinary thing about my great grandmother’s stories is just how timeless they are and how perfectly they lend themselves to the cinematic experience. Eighty years after the publication of the novel, Fox and its creative team will bring Murder on the Orient Express, a classic Christie tale, to new audiences across the world. We are genuinely excited about this partnership and with 33 Poirot stories to be told, we look forward to this being the first of many collaborations.”

Hilary Strong, CEO of Agatha Christie Ltd., said, “We have been working with the fantastic team at Fox for some time now and could not be happier with the creative talent that they have brought together for this wonderful project.”

James Prichard and Hilary Strong will executive produce.