Faraway Downsis almost here!
PEOPLE has an exclusive look at a scene from Hulu’s upcoming six-part film fromBaz Luhrmann, which is an extended cut of his 2008 epicAustraliastarringNicole KidmanandHugh Jackman.
The director describes the never-before-seen clip as a “Katherine Hepburn/Spencer Tracyscene” between Kidman, 56, and Jackman, 55, in which “it’s decided whether Lady Ashley (Kidman) stays overnight or whether she goes straight back.”
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FARAWAY DOWNS.Hulu/20th Century Studios
Hulu/20th Century Studios
Faraway Downswas originally released asAustralia, which received anAcademy Awardnomination for Best Costume Design at the81st Oscars. Luhrmann initially announced he wouldrework the movie into a six-chapter version, complete with a new ending, back in June 2022.
“When we shot the filmAustralia, we ended up with more than 2 million feet of film so the concept of epic, episodic storytelling felt invigorating to me,” he tells PEOPLE now.
And, he insists, those behind the new project “didn’t approachFaraway Downswith the notion of replacing” the filmAustralia —instead, they treated it “as a way forthe creative team to re-approach the storyand look at it like a composer might look at variations upon past compositions or another composer’s work.”
“Though I wouldn’t sayFaraway Downsis better thanAustralia, I would say it is much more rich, allowing us to lean into the primary theme that is embodied in the young Indigenous boy’s retelling of the story, in a way that only chaptered storytelling allows,” Luhrmann adds.
FARAWAY DOWNS.Hulu
Hulu
Trouble meets Lady Ashley, Drover (Jackman) and Nullah when the police arrive, intending to arrest the child. Lady Ashley dismisses the law enforcement officers and resolves to save the cattle ranch with Drover and Nullah’s help — all amidst the backdrop of Australia’s involvement in the Pacific theater of World War II.
An official synopsis for the project reads that Lady Ashley, an English aristocrat, “travels halfway across the world to confront her wayward husband and sell an unusual asset: a million-acre cattle ranch in the Australian Outback called ‘Faraway Downs.' "
Courtesy of Hulu
The film promises a love affair between Kidman and Jackman’s characters, as well as “the unavoidable impact of World War II on Northern Australia” over a period of four years, per the synopsis.
Faraway Downsbegins streaming on Hulu Nov. 26.
source: people.com
