Principal Photography Begins on “The Man Who Stole Portugal”

Principal photography has begun, as reported in May 2026. The film is being shot on location in three countries: the United Kingdom, Portugal, and South Africa. These locations correspond to the story’s movement from colonial backwaters to the boardrooms of the Bank of Portugal. The multi-national schedule reflects the geographic scope of the narrative. The project is marketed as a darkly comic period heist set in a historical context.

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The film adapts the true-crime book by Murray Teigh Bloom, which chronicles the 1925-1926 fraud perpetrated by Portuguese financier Alves Reis. Reis, described as a self-made outsider, engineered a counterfeit scheme that targeted the Bank of Portugal. The official synopsis states that Reis “turns a closed door into an opportunity,” forging credentials and official contracts to infiltrate colonial outposts and the bank’s boardrooms. The story culminates in a bluff characterized as “one of the greatest cons in history.” The fraud is widely regarded as one of the most audacious financial frauds of the 20th century.

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Thomas Napper, whose previous work includes *Jawbone*, directs the project. The screenplay is written by Richard Galazka, who based it on Bloom’s book. The principal cast includes James Nelson Joyce (*This City Is Ours*) as Alves Reis, Emily Fairn (*The Responder*) as his wife Maria, Joel Fry (*Bank of Dave*) as Jose, Herbert Nordrum (*The Worst Person in the World*) as Karel, Kim Bodnia (*F1*) as Adolf, Richard E. Grant (*Can You Ever Forgive Me*) as Sir William, and Dominic West (*Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale*) as Carlos.

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The film is produced by EMU Films, with Michael Elliott serving as producer. Executive producers are Walli Ullah, Jim Mooney, and Terry Smith. Terry Smith also finances the project through his company Moviedrome. Beta Cinema has been appointed as the worldwide sales agent. The company plans to present the film to international buyers at the upcoming Cannes Market, seeking pre-sale agreements before the picture’s completion. Beta Cinema will coordinate the Cannes Market launch and manage worldwide sales.

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The production’s synopsis describes the film as darkly comic and notes that Reis’s hunger for status drives him into a world of financiers, diplomats, bureaucrats, and opportunists, making the establishment a grand accomplice in its own deception. The summary indicates the filmmakers intend to blend humor with a critique of institutional vulnerability.

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• “darkly comic period heist” — Production synopsis

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• “The Man Who Stole Portugal follows Reis’ hunger for status into a world of financiers, diplomats, bureaucrats, and opportunists, as he makes the establishment a grand accomplice in its own deception.” — Production synopsis

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Beta Cinema will introduce *The Man Who Stole Portugal* to potential buyers at the upcoming Cannes Market. The market presentation is intended to generate pre-sale interest and to finalize territorial distribution agreements ahead of the film’s completion.

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