Kenneth Branagh: I had a magical time directing Artemis Fowl

A scene from Artemis Fowl, available next week on Disney +.

It’s the eagerly awaited tale of an Irish criminal mastermind that film bosses have being trying to get made for over a decade. Kenneth Branagh returned to his native Northern Ireland to shoot Artemis Fowl, based on Eoin Colfer’s hit novels, and was eagerly looking forward to a cinema release this summer.

But even Hollywood’s top brass couldn’t have anticipated the impact of Covid-19, which has cost many lives and devastated businesses, as cinemas around the world shut their doors. With Disney + launching recently to families eager for new stories, it was decided to stream.