Daisy Ridley dives into role of pioneering female athlete in 'Young Woman and the Sea'

In "Young Woman and the Sea," "Star Wars" actress Daisy Ridley dives into the role of a pioneering female athlete whose daring swim from France to England changed the course of women's sports.

The inspirational drama from Disney tells the true story of Trudy Ederle, an Olympic gold medalist who became the first woman to successfully swim the English Channel.

The feat, in an era when women were mostly kept out of sports, made her a national hero a century ago, but her story's since been nearly forgotten.

"People cannot believe that what she did has been lost to history," Ridley told On The Red Carpet. "So to be part of the team that is sharing her story, that it is bringing something that has just been lost to light... to be part of telling that is really really cool."

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The film is produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, whose illustrious career includes blockbusters like "The Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise and "Top Gun: Maverick, but Bruckheimer says "Young Woman and the Sea" scored better with test audiences than any film he's worked on.

"It's the highest-testing movie I've ever had and I've had some pretty big movies so I'm confident that if we get an audience in to see it, they're gonna love it," Bruckheimer said.

"You look at what (Trudy Ederle) accomplished and the fact that nobody knows about her and it's an emotional story. We all look for good movies to go see. This is really a good movie."

The film is directed by Joachim R∅nning, who previously worked with Bruckheimer on "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales."

R∅nning told On The Red Carpet he had a very personal reason for wanting to bring Trudy Ederle's story to the big screen.

"I personally made this for my daughters," R∅nning said. "I have two teenage daughters and they are my inspiration. I wanted to give them this story to learn about Trudy and what she did a hundred years ago."

"Young Woman and the Sea" opens in select theaters Friday. It's rated PG.

Disney is the parent company of On The Red Carpet and this station.