‘The Ballad of Wallis Island’ Trailer: Carey Mulligan Is Part of a Folk-Rock Duo in Sundance Indie Comedy
Carey Mulligan is tapping into her offscreen rock roots with buzzy indie, “The Ballad of Wallis Island.”
Mulligan, who is married to Mumford & Sons founder Marcus Mumford, plays a musician in the Focus feature. The official synopsis reads: “‘The Ballad of Wallis Island’ follows Charles (Tim Key), an eccentric lottery winner who lives alone on a remote island and dreams of getting his favorite musicians, McGwyer Mortimer (Tom Basden and Mulligan) back together. His fantasy turns into reality when the bandmates and former lovers accept his invitation to play a private show at his home on Wallis Island. Old tensions resurface as Charles tries desperately to salvage his dream gig.”
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Sian Clifford and Akemnji Ndifornyen round out the cast.
“Here We Go” sitcom star Basden and Key co-wrote the feature and also star in the Focus Features release. James Griffiths directs the comedy, which is set on the fictional titular Welsh island.
Rupert Majendie produces the film, with Mulligan, Griffiths, Basden, and Key executive producing. Mulligan will next star in Season 2 of “Beef” alongside Oscar Isaac, Charles Melton, Cailee Spaeny, Yuh-Jung Youn, and Song Kang-Ho. She has had a series of Netflix projects recently, appearing in both “Spaceman” and “Maestro” for the platform.
“The Ballad of Wallis Island” will have its world premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival on January 25 screening in the Premieres section. Additional Sundance titles in that program include “All That’s Left of You,” “April & Amanda,” “Come See Me in the Good Light,” “It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley,” “Jimpa,” “Last Days,” The Librarians,” Mary Bronstein’s “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” (produced by Josh Safdie and starring Rose Byrne, A$AP Rocky, and Conan O’Brien), and Bill Condon’s “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” led by Jennifer Lopez.
“The movies are emotional,” Sundance Director of Programming Kim Yutani told IndieWire, citing “The Ballad of Wallis Island” in particular as a beloved palette cleanser. “They’re intense, but then they’re also balanced by those films that are lighter, like ‘The Ballad of Wallis Island.’ So it’s always looking at what we have and creating the balance through a curated program.”
“The Ballad of Wallis Island” premieres March 28 in limited theaters. Check out the trailer below.
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