Keira Knightley Tackles New Challenges in Filming “Woman in Cabin 10”
Keira Knightley is quite experienced when it comes to filming on boats. However, her latest project, Woman in Cabin 10, marks her first experience shooting on a luxurious $150 million superyacht. Surprisingly, this was a much tougher task than working on a pirate ship.
Based on Ruth Ware’s 2016 mystery novel, Woman in Cabin 10 is directed by Simon Stone, who co-wrote the screenplay with Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse. In this film, Knightley plays an investigative journalist who detects a suspicious smell while on a charity yacht cruise. The cast also features Guy Pearce, Art Malik, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Kaya Scodelario, Daniel Ings, and Hannah Waddingham, unraveling a tense and mysterious narrative. Yet, upon diving deeper into the story, one might actually be relieved not to have been on set during the production.
For those curious, much of Woman in Cabin 10 was filmed on a real superyacht named Savannah, which sailed in the English Channel in September 2024. The crew often anchored at Portland Harbor, located off the coast of Portland Island in Dorset, England.
In a recent chat with Decider, Knightley revealed that filming was plagued with “a lot of rain and very cold and windy” conditions.
Director Simon Stone noted that many actors were caught off guard. He shared, “Some thought, ‘Wow, a superyacht, this will be great!’ But when I mentioned the southern England coast in the fall, their expressions changed.”
The yacht, valued at around $150 million, belonged to Lukas Lundin, a businessman who made his fortune in various industries, including mining and oil. Though Lundin passed away in 2022, his legacy continues, albeit with some challenges for the crew during filming.
“We couldn’t touch anything,” Knightley said. “No sitting, no walking on carpets, and eating and drinking were only permitted in a small designated area. It wasn’t at all the luxurious experience I imagined.”
In fact, she mentioned that filming on this yacht was more challenging than her scenes on the iconic Pirates of the Caribbean films.
“On pirate ships, you can be a bit reckless,” she explained. “But here, it’s like, ‘Run, but don’t lean on the walls!’ I knew breaking anything could cost a fortune.”
Fortunately, the crew managed to avoid major mishaps. Stone noted, “We might’ve scuffed the floor a bit, but overall, we did a good job.”
Alongside the four weeks of yacht filming, Woman in Cabin 10 also utilized a sound stage for three additional weeks to capture some interior scenes.
Ultimately, it seems that making a movie aboard a superyacht isn’t quite as enjoyable as a relaxing cruise on one.
