Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch headed down to the South Coast of Devon for the filming of their latest feature.
Last summer, if you were living or holidaying on the South Devon, UK coast, you may have spotted film crews and a few well-known faces as Searchlight Pictures filmed The Roses in and around glorious Salcombe, Devon.
The new film is being released late-August 2025 and is a dark comic tale based on the 1981 book The War of the Roses by Warren Adler, which was also made into a film in 1989 starring Danny DeVito, Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner.
This new take on the book stars British actors Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch, as well as Doctor Who’s Ncuti Gatwa, Saturday Night Live’s Kate McKinnon, and Andy Samberg from The Lonely Island, SNL and Brooklyn Nine-Nine (and of course, comedy classic Hot Rod).
The film follows Ivy and Theo, a couple who appear to have it all—until their marriage begins to fall apart, leading to chaos, competition, and sharp-tongued battles.
Salcombe, Devon features heavily in the film, including the harbour, cottages and stunning coastline.
One of the key locations is expected to be the Winking Prawn, a popular local beach café that was transformed into fictional restaurant ‘We’ve Got Crabs’ for The Roses.
The café will likely gain a few more customers and fans once the film is released.
Director Jay Roach, who also directed comedy Meet The Parents, said of the café:
“We scoured the coasts of England and after months found The Winking Prawn in Salcombe, South Devon….the whole community collaborated with our crew in ways I’ve never experienced in a location before. We and our film’s characters found a very happy home for a while in the magical Winking Prawn in Salcombe.”
Additional filming took place in Los Angeles, California.
“The Roses is a wildly funny, bigger than life, and yet deeply human story,’ said Searchlight president Matthew Greenfield.
The Roses is produced by Searchlight Pictures alongside South of the River Pictures (Olivia Colman’s production company) and SunnyMarch (Benedict Cumberbatch’s production company).
Featured image: Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch in THE ROSES. Photo by Jaap Buitendijk, Courtesy of Searchlight Pictures. © 2025 Searchlight Pictures All Rights Reserved.
