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Joan Collins, 92, to Play Wallis Simpson in Biopic 'My Duchess'

The 92-year-old actor frames the project as a long-planned bid to rethink Wallis Simpson's image.

Overview

  • Collins confirmed the role in a British Vogue interview published Thursday, with Mike Newell directing, Louise Fennell writing, and Isabella Rossellini set to play lawyer Suzanne Blum.
  • The film focuses on Simpson’s final years in Paris, where she lived after Edward VIII abdicated, and it explores her relationship with Blum.
  • Collins says her Dynasty character Alexis Carrington “haunted” her public image, a treatment she likens to how Simpson was judged by the press.
  • She calls My Duchess a passion project she has pursued for decades as a way to create a substantial role for an older woman.
  • Coverage varies on production specifics and on claims about Blum’s conduct toward Simpson, and those details have not been uniformly verified.