Jack Whitehall joins Halle Berry, Zoe Kravitz and Colin Firth in Otherwise Engaged, shooting in New York from March 2027

Here’s one that’s bound to make fans of glitzy, well-cast rom-coms sit up: Otherwise Engaged has managed to bag Halle Berry, Zoë Kravitz, Colin Firth, and, as of a fresh exclusive, Jack Whitehall. You don’t get much starrier than that, frankly. It’s got the sort of line-up that makes you wonder how they all managed to align their diaries.

Otherwise Engaged begins filming in New York in March 2027.

Whitehall’s addition is the latest bit of casting news. If you’re only used to seeing him muck about on British telly, the prospect of him dodging family drama with Berry and Firth does sound like a nice bit of chaos. Officially, he’s best known for The ’Burbs and has a British Comedy Award on his mantle, if that’s a factor for you.

Who’s Playing Who?

Here’s how it’s shaping up: Whitehall is Charlie, apparently head-over-heels for Gabby – that’s Zoë Kravitz – and ready to tie the knot. All’s going to plan until his estranged dad shows up. Cue Colin Firth as the aforementioned father, an ex-business tycoon who’s just done a stint in prison. To make things even messier, Firth’s character falls for Gabby’s mum, who will be played by Halle Berry. So if you’re keeping track: it’s not just a wedding, it’s a new family tree getting pencilled in on both sides thanks to some entirely inconvenient midlife romance.

• Jack Whitehall as Charlie (the hapless groom-to-be)
• Zoë Kravitz as Gabby (the bride-to-be with arguably more patience than most)
• Colin Firth as Charlie’s dad (reformed, sort of)
• Halle Berry as Gabby’s mum (fiercely independent, apparently irresistible)

Suzanne Farwell is in the director’s chair for this one, having also co-written the script with Gabriel Mizrahi. She knows her way round a relationship comedy, and she’s pretty pleased to show it. Here’s how she described the project as she was gearing up to introduce it at TIFF:

Suzanne Farwell, on Otherwise Engaged: "Having spent much of my career helping bring sophisticated relationship comedies to the screen, I couldn’t be more excited to bring my love for this genre to Otherwise Engaged. I’m thrilled to be working with such an extraordinary cast and creative team to bring it to life and look forward to introducing the project to the international marketplace at TIFF."

On the business side, Farwell’s also producing, joined by Susan Cartsonis and Laura Riste. CAA Media Finance is dealing with the American release, while Mister Smith Entertainment will handle international distribution rights – they’ll start pre-selling it round the various markets at Toronto, just to drum up a bit more buzz before shooting kicks off.