When Paul Carpenter (Patrick Gibson) and Sophie Pettingel (Sophie Wilde) start interning at the mysterious London firm J.W. Wells & Co., they quickly realize that it's no ordinary job. When Paul is tasked with finding a portable door, he uncovers the magical secrets that lie within the company – and uncovers a corporate plot to manipulate free will by way of ancient magical practices.
Directed by Jeffrey Walker (Difficult People) and based on the book of the same name by Tom Holt, The Portable Door is a whimsical fantasy film with stunning visuals – and creatures crafted by The Jim Henson Company. Total Film sat down for a brief chat with stars Miranda Otto and Sophie Wilde to discuss the movie's magic and whimsy.
What drew you both to the script?
Miranda Otto: I was working on another project that was all about the bushfires in Australia, which was really great, but a really tragic story. In the middle of that I received this script and it was such an escape to read about all these worlds and all the magic within the JW Wells company. I was just really attracted to something that was light and bright and hopeful.
Sophie Wilde: Yeah. It felt really quirky and fun. And similarly, I'd been working on like a really intense, BBC gang crime show and I was like, I really wanna do something fun and I wanna come to work every day and play and get to be a kid. So yeah, it was exactly that.
I really enjoyed Sophie's character and the way she warms up to Paul gradually throughout the film.
SW: It's so sweet – that love story at the heart of it. I feel like we didn't even realize how much that was a part of the film really until I watched it and I was like, 'Oh, this is a love story!'
MO: No, that's what I thought, too. I thought the whole thing at the heart of it hangs on you two and your relationship and watching that develop. That's very much the heart of the story.
You played a very different witch than Zelda Spellman.
Yeah. Very different. Very different. Not so malevolent as Zelda. Not so dark as Zelda. Countess Judy knows a lot about what's going on in the world, but she's kind of a lighter type of figure I think in some ways. You know, she's sort of just gliding through and having people running after her.
What part or parts of the film are you most excited for people to see?
MO: I think just like the magic of it – and the sets are incredible, there's so many little details and things that will be amazing for audiences to see. And the creatures, the Henson goblins and all of that is so fantastic. But just the idea of having a portable door that you could go wherever you wanted to go, it just sort of blows your mind to think of something like that.
The Portable Door is set to hit Sky Cinema in the UK and MGM+ in the US on April 7. For more, check out our list of the most exciting upcoming movies in 2023 and beyond.
