The Gambler Wife - Film Adaptation
The Idiot(s)
Andrew D. Kaufman's PEN Finalist biography, The Gambler Wife: A True Story of Love, Risk, and the Woman Who Saved Dostoyevsky, is now a major international film, The Idiot(s), starring BAFTA winner Aimee Lou Wood and Johnny Flynn and directed by Academy Award nominee Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert.
Festival Premieres & Honors
Special Presentations · Canadian Premiere
September 2026
Opening Night Film · European Premiere
September 24, 2026
Official Competition · One of 10 films competing for Best Film
October 2026
October 2026
About the Film
Starring
Aimee Lou Wood as Anna Dostoyevskaya
Johnny Flynn as Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Also Featuring: Vicky Krieps, Christian Friedel, Barbara Marten, Rainer Bock.
Production
Directors: Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert
Producers: Gold Rush Pictures and Hype Studios
Status: World Premiere, Telluride Film Festival, September 2026; Toronto International Film Festival (Special Presentations); Hamburg Film Fest (Opening Film); BFI London Film Festival (in Competition); Rome Film Festival; AFI Film Fest
The Story
The film brings to life the extraordinary partnership between the brilliant young woman who saved Dostoyevsky and the troubled genius whose masterworks changed literature forever.
From Book to Film
The Idiot(s) is adapted from Andrew D. Kaufman's The Gambler Wife: A True Story of Love, Risk, and the Woman Who Saved Dostoyevsky, a finalist for the PEN America Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography.
The book tells the true story of Anna Dostoyevskaya, the remarkable young stenographer who became Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s wife, collaborator, business partner, and the driving force behind the preservation of his literary legacy.
The Idiot(s)-
Festival News
THE IDIOT(S) SELECTED FOR ROME FILM FEST
The Idiot(s) is selected for the 21st Rome Film Festival, continuing the film’s international festival run following Telluride, Toronto, and Hamburg.
THE IDIOT(S) OPENS FILMFEST HAMBURG
The Idiot(s) opens the 34th Filmfest Hamburg on September 24 marking the film’s European premiere. Christian Friedel attends alongside directors Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert.
THE IDIOT(S) SELECTED FOR BFI LONDON FILM FESTIVAL OFFICIAL COMPETITION
The Idiot(s) is one of 10 films selected for the Official Competition at the 70th BFI London Film Festival, competing for the festival's Best Film Award.
THE IDIOT(S) SELECTED FOR AFI FEST
The Idiot(s) joins the lineup of AFI FEST 2026 in Hollywood, October 21-25, continuing its international festival run.
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