Letitia Wright and Josh O’Connor to star in an Irish film about direct provision

Letitia Wright and Josh O’Connor, two of the UK’s rising stars, have been cast to star in a film about direct provision in Ireland.

Letitia Wright, star of Black Panther and Black Mirror, and Josh O’Connor, who plays Prince Charles in The Crown have been cast in Provision by Irish writer-director Frank Berry, director of Michael Inside.

According to Hollywood Reporter, “Provision will tell the story of Ishtar Deresse (Wright), a young African woman fleeing persecution from criminals in her home country of Nigeria due to drug debts her deceased brother left behind. She spends over two years in Ireland’s asylum system, and during this time she stays at various remote and over-crowded centers around the country, where she lives under a constant threat of deportation.

After watching the family she shared a room with be deported, Ishtar is approached by a new security guard Conor Healy (O’Connor) who, feeling guilty about his involvement in the deportation, offers her the use of the kitchen at night to cook her own food. Having spent time in prison, Conor empathises with the residents, and in particular with Ishtar’s traumatic past. The more Ishtar and Conor learn about each other, the more their friendship develops.

However their growing connection, and any possibility of a future together comes under frequent threat and disruption in an environment where asylum seekers are deemed to be just numbers in a dehumanizing system.”

Shooting is due to start in April in Ireland.

Photography by Netflix.