Emily Blunt is westward-bound.
The actress will next star in Amazon Studios and BBC’s The English, an “epic chase Western” that follows an aristocratic Englishwoman, Lady Cornelia Locke (Blunt), and a Pawnee ex-cavalry scout, Eli Whipp (Chaske Spencer) as they arrive together on a dangerous journey in 1890 America. Written and directed by The Honourable Woman’s Hugo Blick, all six episodes of the series will premiere on Prime Video within the U.S. in November.
Over the past 20 years, Blunt has appeared mostly in movies (including notable hits like A Quiet Place and The Devil Wears Prada), but she was “compelled irresistibly” to The English, which she also executive produces.
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“It had me in its grip from the primary page turn,” she tells ELLE.com via email. “I used to be type of powerless; I believe that’s how I remember feeling once I read that first episode! Achingly beautiful yet propulsive and surprising.”
Chaske Spencer.
Diego Lopez Calvin/Amazon Studios/BBC
Here’s how Blunt views the project: “It is a journey of a quest for vengeance and yet it’s a love story. An epic love story between two characters, an Englishwoman and a Native American warrior, each have suffered terrible loss and who come into one another’s lives unexpectedly like a few comets meeting, and together, they find that every one that matters to them now’s that they survive. And it’s such a gauntlet that they should survive! And every needs the opposite to do this. It totally swept me away. It has the pace of a chase thriller and yet at its core is deeply tender.”
Spencer was also moved. He says that he was inspired most by Cornelia and Eli’s journey, “and their incredible connection while traveling in a brutal latest world.”
Spencer and Blunt in The English.
Diego Lopez Calvin/Amazon Studios/BBC
You may recognize Spencer from The Twilight Saga (he played Sam Uley), the Cinemax series Banshee, or the 2021 acclaimed indie film Wild Indian. You’ll probably see more of him when he appears in Disney+’s Marvel series Echo, but until then, he’s embodying The English’s Eli, “a tortured soul who’s searching for answers and possibly even redemption,” he tells ELLE.com.
Blunt’s Cornelia Locke completes their unlikely pair. She “arrives like an entire fish out of water into what seems like Alice within the Wild, Wild West,” the actress explains. “And surprisingly, she’s searching for a blood revenge for the death of her son. At the start she’s spirited and buoyant, nevertheless in poor health prepared she is for the violent journey ahead. But along the best way, and with the assistance of Eli Whipp at her side, she goes through an awakening. I admired her guts and the empathy that reigns supreme in her, even after suffering the lack of a toddler in a way that stops the guts. She seems to live fearlessly and love fearlessly. And yet being the mystery that she is, possesses this fevered intent on revenge, and in doing so, she sees this as reclaiming her identity.”
Diego Lopez Calvin/Prime Video
Diego Lopez Calvin/Amazon Studios/BBC
The destination of Cornelia and Eli’s trying voyage is Hoxem, Wyoming. But once they arrive, an investigation led by the local sheriff, Robert Marshall (Stephen Rea), and a young widow, Martha Myers (Valerie Pachner), unveils a string of bizarre unsolved murders that prove Eli and Cornelia have a shared past. Ciarán Hinds, Rafe Spall, Tom Hughes, and Toby Jones round out the ensemble.
The synopsis guarantees that The English will “tell a uniquely compelling parable on race, power, and love.” In response to author and director Hugo Blick, “At its best, the Western allows us to flee the truth of who we’re and the way we live today. Something about its huge landscapes, mythic heroes and villains, and the epic violence and love they pursue speaks on to our souls. It’s definitely why we made this one, and why we hope you’ll watch.”
Diego Lopez Calvin/Amazon Studios/BBC
Diego Lopez Calvin/Amazon Studios/BBC
Erica Gonzales is the Senior Culture Editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage on TV, movies, music, books, and more. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. There may be a 75 percent probability she’s listening to Lorde right away.
