Kate Winslet to star alongside daughter in I Am Ruth, ‘a story for our times’ confronting the mental health crisis in young people

After her Emmy award winning turn in Mare of Easttown, Kate Winslet is returning to TV – and this time it’s a family affair.

The Academy Award and Emmy winning actress will star alongside her real-life daughter, Mia Threapleton, in I Am Ruth.

I Am Ruth, airing on British broadcaster Channel 4, is a feature-length instalment of the BAFTA-nominated and female-led drama anthology series I Am, created by BAFTA winning filmmaker Dominic Savage.

As well as starring in the new instalment, Kate Winslet co-wrote the storyline for I Am Ruth alongside Dominic. It has been described as “a story for our times about the endemic mental health crisis affecting young people.”

The film will offer an honest and authentic portrayal of a mother and daughter’s increasingly strained relationship as the pressures of social media start to affect the young daughter.

Kate will star as Ruth, a loving and concerned mother who witnesses her teenage daughter Freya (Mia Threapleton) retreating into herself as she becomes more and more consumed by social media.

Speaking of the series, Titanic star Kate said in a press release, “The collaborative and sensitive way in which Dominic Savage goes about creating and filming each episode of 'I Am' is challenging, rewarding and completely immersive.”

“The actors become these roles, and there is simply no room for pretending. It's a working environment that any actor would give anything to be a part of, and I can safely say with my hand on heart that I will never forget the things we learnt as we made this piece.”

“The low key, quiet nature in which we put this together is how I aspire to work all the time. Often creative environments can be big and overwhelming, but part of Dominic's directorial process is to keep things to a bare minimum and just focus on the actors and the world we are creating alongside him, and with his unwavering support. It was a privilege and an inspiration to work with Dominic Savage. He's simply extraordinary.”

Mia, Kate’s daughter with her ex-husband Jim Threapleton, is no stranger to acting.

She’s previously starred alongside her famous mom in the 2014 movie, A Little Chaos, and currently stars in the Dangerous Liaisons prequel series.

Kate has previously talked about her daughter’s career, telling TV host Lorraine Kelly she “always suspected” Mia would become an actress.

“Then a few years ago she turned around and said, ‘I’d like to give it a go,'” Kate said. “What’s great for her is she has a different surname so she slipped under the radar and the people who cast her didn’t know she was my daughter and that was important for her self-esteem, of course.”

The I Am anthology series has become a massive hit for Channel 4.

Previous instalments have included I Am Maria, which starred Lesley Manville (currently starring as Princess Margaret in The Crown season 5) as a woman disturbed by the thought of turning 60. At a crossroads, she decides whether to escape her suffocating marriage.

I Am Ruth will air on Channel 4 later this year, with a precise date yet to be announced.