Daisy Edgar-Jones Reveals Sense & Sensibility’s “True Love Story”

As a Jane Austen fan, my immediate reaction to Daisy Edgar-Jones’ new adaptation of Sense & Sensibility was confusion. We already have Emma Thompson’s Oscar-winning version from 1995, which also stars Kate Winslet, Hugh Grant, and Alan Rickman. It’s iconic, a classic, and what I thought was untouchable. But now that I’ve seen the 2026 Sense & Sensibility adaptation, I am no longer bewildered.

While the 1995 version is still a masterpiece that beautifully brings Austen’s world to the screen, there’s one thing that Georgia Oakley’s film does better: the Dashwoods. As much as I adore Thompson and Winslet as Elinor and Marianne, their sisterly bond on screen isn’t as emotionally connected as Edgar-Jones and Esmé Creed-Miles. And that new attention to this relationship was very intentional, according to Edgar-Jones.

The Normal People star tells Elite Daily that Oakley shared her unique vision for this adaption when pitching the idea of another Sense & Sensibility movie. “We were talking a lot about how she really wanted to make the true love story of the film be the sisters,” says Edgar-Jones. Even though there is plenty of yearning from Edward Ferrars and Col. Brandon — I would even say there’s yearning to the max — the film truly does center on Elinor and Marianne.

This Is A More Emotional Sense & Sensibility

Sense & Sensibility has always been about Elinor and Marianne growing to understand their different approaches to love. Thompson and Winslet’s take on these characters may be more accurate to the Georgian era, but their bond feels reserved and cold at times. I mean, it takes centuries for Marianne to realize Elinor is in love with Edward.

Oakley’s version, however, is less proper and more raw. The overall vibe is “undone,” which Edgar-Jones says drew her into the project as well. “[Georgia] wanted to see a version of the Dashwoods that was a little more of the earth,” she says. Adorned in berry-stained clothes with their hair worn down, the Dashwoods are able to express their feelings more openly. Creed-Miles’ version of Marianne can see Elinor’s infatuation right away even if she doesn’t quite get the appeal. That’s a sister who gets it.

It may not be super accurate to Austen’s period, but when I see Elinor and Marianne in Oakley’s Sense & Sensibility, I feel for them the same way I do my own sister. I’d rather attend a sleepover with the Dashwoods than get a love confession from Edward Ferrars — and that’s a lot coming from a romance enthusiast like myself. I require so much from Elinor and Marianne, and that is precisely why we needed this version to add to the collection.