Jane Austen is back on the big screen. A new film adaptation of “Sense and Sensibility,” starring Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esmé Creed-Miles as the Dashwood sisters, opens in US theaters on Friday, October 16, 2026. Here is everything to know before you book a ticket: the cast, the creative team, what critics are saying, and the streaming situation.
Release date and how to watch
Focus Features releases “Sense and Sensibility” exclusively in theaters on October 16, 2026, in a wide release, per Rotten Tomatoes and the film’s official Focus Features page, where tickets are already on sale. The film is rated PG and runs 2 hours 12 minutes. No streaming date has been announced, so for now the big screen is the only way to see it.
Who is in it and who made it
Daisy Edgar-Jones plays the practical Elinor Dashwood, with Esmé Creed-Miles as her impulsive younger sister Marianne. The cast also includes Caitríona Balfe, Frank Dillane, George MacKay and Fiona Shaw. Georgia Oakley (“Blue Jean”) directs from a screenplay by Diana Reid, with Working Title’s Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner among the producers.
It is the first major film adaptation of Austen’s novel directed by a woman, and it arrives 31 years after the beloved 1995 Ang Lee version that won Emma Thompson an Oscar for her screenplay. At the film’s London world premiere on September 15, Oakley and her stars told Reuters they wanted a more authentic, earthy take that puts the sisters’ bond, not just the romances, at the center of the story.
What critics are saying
Early reviews are warm. The Associated Press ran two takes ahead of opening day. Critic Jocelyn Noveck writes that Oakley “makes a good case” for a 21st-century “Sense and Sensibility” by shifting the focus from romance to sisterhood, praising “strong performances all around,” engaging dance scenes and a focus on the natural world. A second AP piece highlights the chemistry between Edgar-Jones and Creed-Miles, who had worked together before, and Oakley’s inspiration from moodier period films like “Wuthering Heights.”
The story itself is Austen 101: after the Dashwood sisters are left in reduced circumstances, the reserved Elinor and the passionate Marianne navigate love, heartbreak and each other. If the 1995 film was your introduction to Austen, this version aims to speak to a new generation while keeping the sisterhood at its heart.
Key facts at a glance
October 16, 2026: Opens wide in US theaters, tickets on sale now
Rated PG, 2h 12m: Romance and drama from Focus Features and Working Title
September 15, 2026: World premiere in London
Streaming: No date announced; theaters only for now
