2017 Film 'Wonder' Is Getting a Movie Universe, Helen Mirren to Star in Spin-Off

The 2017 movie Wonder is getting a spin-off to grow the film’s universe.

White Bird: A Wonder Story will serve as a creative companion drawn from the universe of the film, which grossed more than $300 million at the global box office.

In the film, “kindness even has the power to save lives, as Julian Albans (Bryce Gheisar), the bully who left Beecher Prep, is visited by his Grandmère from Paris and is transformed by her remarkable story of compassion and courage. As a girl in Nazi-occupied France, the young Grandmère goes into hiding with the help of a schoolmate, a young man who risks everything to give her the chance to survive. Together, they find beauty and love in the secret world of their own creation.”

Helen Mirren will be playing Grandmère while Gillian Anderson will star as Julian’s mother. Ariella Glaser will play Sara, the young Grandmère as a child in Nazi-occupied France, and Orlando Schwerdt will play Julien, a classmate who, with his parents, hides Sara at great personal risk.

Finding Neverland and Christopher Robin director Marc Forster will be directing the project. He said, “I am deeply honored to have Helen Mirren join us on this journey. Beyond being a brilliant actress, Helen brings an immeasurable level of depth, humanity, and empathy to her roles, elevating any project she is a part of. She is a true artist and I couldn’t be more excited to have her alongside our incredibly talented cast.”

The film is based on the book “White Bird” by R.J. Palacio.