Ahead of the theatrical premiere forBlack Panther: Wakanda Forever, fans can catch actressLetitia Wrightin the upcoming surreal biopicThe Silent Twins. Based on the true story ofJune(Wright) andJennifer Gibbons(Tamara Lawrance), and adapted to screen from the best-selling book of the same name by investigative journalistMarjorie Wallace, Focus Features has just announced that the film will stream exclusively on Peacock early November.
Directed byAgnieszka Smoczynska, the filmmaker behind 2015’s beautifully haunting featureThe Lure,The Silent Twinschronicles the difficult story of two Black sisters - twins - who’ve vowed only to speak to one another. As a result of their peculiar practices and growing up the only Black children in a small town in Wales in the ’70s, both girls suffer ridicule from their peers, and later, speculation and scrutiny from society. Growing up, June and Jennifer withdrew into each other to create a colorful world and language just for them, but soon come to find out that society doesn’t often take kindly to those who seek to live outside the rigid margins.
Through both dreamy imagery typical of Smoczynska’s filmography and stop-motion animation,Andrea Seigel’s screenplay explores the twins' writings and institutionalization as reported by Wallace. The sisters developed a system through which they expressed their feelings and understanding of the world around them, one that allowed them to create lyrical poetry. When perceived to be unfit mentally, due their lack of communication with others, June and Jennifer are shipped off to an institution that proves to be more harmful than good. The girls descend into anti-social behaviors that bring down more disdain by those who cannot understand them.
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When talking withDeadline, Wright, who is an executive producer for the film, describedThe Silent Sistersas, “…a tragic story, and one of loss and one of heartbreak, but one of incredible misunderstanding.” Both the screenwriter Seigel and director Smoczynska also served as executive producers for the production, which featuresJodhi Mayas Marjorie Wallace, as well asJack Bandeira,Treva Etienne, andAmarah-Jae St. Aubyn.
The Silent Twinsjoins Peacock’s growing roster of acclaimed films, includingHonk for JesusandScott Derrickson’sThe Black Phone, premiering on the streaming service, exclusively, on November 4. You can read the official synopsis and watch the trailer below:
Based on the lives of June and Jennifer Gibbons, real-life identical twins who grew up in Wales, part of the only Black family in a small town. The two became known as “the silent twins” because of their refusal to communicate with anyone other than each other. They developed their own language and became catatonic when separated. The story takes place after a spree of vandalism inspired by an American boy they both idolize, when the girls, now teenagers, are sentenced to Broadmoor, an infamous psychiatric hospital, where they face the choice to separate and survive or die together.
