Claire Danes replaces Keira Knightley in The Essex Serpent

ISLAMABAD-She was a last-minute addition to the cast of gothic costume drama The Essex Serpent after Keira Knightley pulled out.But Claire Danes looked just the part when she was pictured filming the TV adaptation of the popular novel on the banks of the Thames in Wapping, east London.The American actress, 41, is best known for playing CIA officer Carrie Mathison in hit American political thriller Homeland.She has replaced Miss Knightley, 35, in the new production because of the British star’s concerns about finding childcare during the pandemic for her two small daughters.

Pictures show Miss Danes in Victorian clothes as lead character Cora Seaborne, wearing a long black skirt and top, gloves and a muffler.

It is Miss Danes’s first project since Homeland ended. The Essex Serpent is being made for Apple TV+ by See-Saw Films, the company which made The King’s Speech.