# Cry to Heaven (film)
**Cry to Heaven** is an upcoming feature film written, directed, and produced by [Tom Ford](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-ford), adapting [Anne Rice](https://www.edgepedia.org/anne-rice)'s 1982 historical novel of the same name about castrato singers in 18th-century [Italian opera](https://www.edgepedia.org/italian-opera).[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) The film marks the acting debut of the singer Adele and stars an ensemble cast including Nicholas Hoult, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, George MacKay, Colin Firth, Paul Bettany, Owen Cooper, and Hunter Schafer.[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) Principal photography took place in Italy from January 19 to March 23, 2026, and as of October 3, 2026 the film was in post-production ahead of a planned late fall 2026 release.[2](https://www.italyformovies.com/filmset/detail/601/cry-to-heaven) • [3](https://www.productionlist.com/production/cry-to-heaven) • [1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Source | Adaptation of *Cry to Heaven*, Anne Rice's 1982 novel set in the world of 18th-century Italian opera[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) |
| Filmmaker | Written, directed, and produced by Tom Ford; his third feature after *A Single Man* (2009) and *Nocturnal Animals* (2016)[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) • [4](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/tom-ford-cry-to-heaven-news-79596/) |
| Financing | Self-financed by Ford, who plans to find a buyer after production is complete[5](https://au.variety.com/2025/film/global/adele-acting-debut-tom-ford-cry-to-heaven-29913/) |
| Principal photography | January 19 to March 23, 2026, a 10-week shoot in Rome and Caserta, Italy[2](https://www.italyformovies.com/filmset/detail/601/cry-to-heaven) |
| Notable casting | Adele in her acting debut, alongside Nicholas Hoult, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, George MacKay, Colin Firth, Paul Bettany, Owen Cooper, and Hunter Schafer[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) |
| Status | In post-production as of October 3, 2026; planned release in late fall 2026[3](https://www.productionlist.com/production/cry-to-heaven) • [1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) |
## The source novel
Anne Rice (1941–2021), the New Orleans-born author best known for her 1976 debut *Interview with the Vampire*, published *Cry to Heaven* with [Alfred A. Knopf](https://www.edgepedia.org/alfred-a-knopf) in 1982.[6](https://exhibitions.london.ac.uk/s/seizedbooks/item/92) The novel is set in the world of 18th-century Italian opera and follows two men castrated as boys to preserve their soprano voices.[7](https://annerice.com/Bookshelf-CryToHeaven.html)
Guido Maffeo, a peasant child castrated at age six, becomes an opera star, loses his voice at 17, and settles into teaching and composition at the castrati music school in Naples.[7](https://annerice.com/Bookshelf-CryToHeaven.html) • [8](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/anne-rice/cry-to-heaven/) His life becomes intertwined with Tonio Treschi, the son of a Venetian nobleman, who dreams of singing though his family scoffs that the profession belongs to the castrati, not a nobleman.[7](https://annerice.com/Bookshelf-CryToHeaven.html) Tonio is half-choosing and half-forced into castration and begins a lifelong plot of revenge on his half-brother Carlo; at Guido's conservatory he realizes what has been done to him and at first refuses to sing, before returning to the voice that carries him to stardom.[7](https://annerice.com/Bookshelf-CryToHeaven.html) A contemporary Kirkus review described the book as Rice's exploration of "the musical demiworld of the 18th-century castrati," and a Washington Post review in October 1982 called it "an absorbing look at a fascinating and little-known world."[8](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/anne-rice/cry-to-heaven/) • [9](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/entertainment/books/1982/10/03/sacrificed-for-the-sound-of-seraphim/c195d3f3-500e-43b7-88e1-ba4622d23cf5/)
## Production
The project was announced in November 2025, when Ford's production company confirmed that Adele would co-star in the adaptation.[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) Ford writes, directs, and produces, and as with his previous features he is financing the film himself; in 2016 he told The Associated Press, "I will only ever make a movie if I control the underlying rights."[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) According to Variety, he plans to seek a buyer for distribution after production is complete.[5](https://au.variety.com/2025/film/global/adele-acting-debut-tom-ford-cry-to-heaven-29913/)
**Filming in Italy.** Principal photography ran from January 19 to March 23, 2026, a 10-week shoot.[2](https://www.italyformovies.com/filmset/detail/601/cry-to-heaven) [The Italian](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-italian) production database lists 42 days of shooting in Rome, 6 days at the [Royal Palace of Caserta](https://www.edgepedia.org/royal-palace-of-caserta) in Campania, and a further 12 days in Rome, with 180 local crew members.[2](https://www.italyformovies.com/filmset/detail/601/cry-to-heaven) The film is a UK production by CHT Films with executive production by Mestiere Cinema.[2](https://www.italyformovies.com/filmset/detail/601/cry-to-heaven) Filming wrapped in Italy in late March 2026, after which the film entered post-production.[10](https://maxblizz.com/tom-fords-cry-to-heaven-starring-nicholas-hoult-adele-aaron-taylor-johnson-officially-wraps-filming-in-italy/)
**Status.** The industry database Production List, published by the Film & Television Industry Alliance, recorded the film as in post-production as of October 3, 2026, with the production companies Fade to Black Films and Fifth Season attached and Christopher Rice, Anne Rice's son, credited as producer.[3](https://www.productionlist.com/production/cry-to-heaven) The same listing states that principal photography had finished.[3](https://www.productionlist.com/production/cry-to-heaven) At announcement, the planned release window was late fall 2026.[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002)
## Cast and context
Adele, the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter, makes her feature acting debut in the film.[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) The ensemble announced at the project's unveiling also included [Nicholas Hoult](https://www.edgepedia.org/nicholas-hoult), Aaron Taylor-Johnson, George MacKay, Colin Firth, Paul Bettany, Owen Cooper, the young breakout of the television series *Adolescence*, and [Hunter Schafer](https://www.edgepedia.org/hunter-schafer), with no details initially available about their specific roles.[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) Later reports added names such as [Thandiwe Newton](https://www.edgepedia.org/thandiwe-newton), Ciarán Hinds, and Mark Strong to the cast list.[10](https://maxblizz.com/tom-fords-cry-to-heaven-starring-nicholas-hoult-adele-aaron-taylor-johnson-officially-wraps-filming-in-italy/)
*Cry to Heaven* is Ford's third feature and his first film since he stepped down from his fashion brand in 2022.[4](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/tom-ford-cry-to-heaven-news-79596/) His directing debut was the romantic drama *A Single Man* in 2009, followed by the psychological thriller *[Nocturnal Animals](https://www.edgepedia.org/nocturnal-animals)* in 2016.[1](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002) The film's subject, the castrati, refers to male singers castrated before puberty to preserve their soprano singing voices, a practice of the 18th-century opera world in which the story is set.[4](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/tom-ford-cry-to-heaven-news-79596/)
## References
1. [Adele will make her acting debut in Tom Ford's adaptation of 'Cry to Heaven', The Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/442098a4d98fe4bf1c11894052048002)
2. [Cry to Heaven | scheda set, Italy for Movies](https://www.italyformovies.com/filmset/detail/601/cry-to-heaven)
3. [Cry To Heaven | Production List, Film & Television Industry Alliance](https://www.productionlist.com/production/cry-to-heaven)
4. [Tom Ford's 'Cry to Heaven' News + Updates, Backstage](https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/tom-ford-cry-to-heaven-news-79596/)
5. [Adele to Make Acting Debut in Tom Ford's 'Cry to Heaven', Variety](https://au.variety.com/2025/film/global/adele-acting-debut-tom-ford-cry-to-heaven-29913/)
6. [Cry to heaven, Seized Books exhibition, University of London](https://exhibitions.london.ac.uk/s/seizedbooks/item/92)
7. [Cry to Heaven (1982), AnneRice.com](https://annerice.com/Bookshelf-CryToHeaven.html)
8. [CRY TO HEAVEN, Kirkus Reviews](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/anne-rice/cry-to-heaven/)
9. [Sacrificed for the Sound of Seraphim, The Washington Post (October 2, 1982)](https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/entertainment/books/1982/10/03/sacrificed-for-the-sound-of-seraphim/c195d3f3-500e-43b7-88e1-ba4622d23cf5/)
10. [Tom Ford's Cry to Heaven ... Officially Wraps Filming in Italy, MaxBlizz](https://maxblizz.com/tom-fords-cry-to-heaven-starring-nicholas-hoult-adele-aaron-taylor-johnson-officially-wraps-filming-in-italy/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Drama and biographical films (individual works) › Upcoming drama films 2027 onward*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license