Disney+ has cast Bel Powley (The Morning Show), Liev Schreiber (Ray Donovan), and Joe Cole (Peaky Blinders) in leading roles for its upcoming Anne Frank drama series, A Small Light.
The scripted series from National Geographic follows the real-life story of Miep Gies, the Dutch woman who risked her life to protect Anne Frank’s family from the Nazis. Joan Rater and Tony Phelan (Grey’s Anatomy) will serve as showrunners and executive producers, alongside Susanna Fogel (The Flight Attendant), who will also direct multiple episodes, including the pilot.
Powley will play the faithful and funny Miep Gies, an utterly ordinary secretary who keeps her heroic work secret from her friends and family. She does this all while dealing with the everyday pressures of work, daily life in wartime under Nazi occupation, and a new marriage.
Schreiber will portray Otto Frank, Anne Frank’s father and the boss of Miep, who asks his devoted secretary to hide him and his family from the Nazis during World War II. Otto was the most optimistic of those in hiding, maintaining his role as the rock and the father figure. When he returned from Auschwitz, he kept that optimism and waited for his daughters to return. When he later learned that they had both died, Miep was the one that gave him the diary Anne kept.
Finally, Cole will play Jan Gies, Miep’s daring and loyal husband. He was Miep’s one and only confidante, helping her take care of the Franks and four others hiding out in the attic of Otto’s company. In addition, Jan was a social worker in Amsterdam, serving those most impacted by the Nazi occupation.
The series marks the second National Geographic scripted drama for Disney+ following The Right Stuff, a 2020 historical series that traced the origins and evolution of the United States space program.
A Small Light, TBA, Disney+
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