Duets star Gwyneth Paltrow has replaced Charlize Theron in the upcoming film The Danish Girl, which stars Nicole Kidman (BMX Bandits) as Einar Wegener, who began gender reassignment surgery in 1930 and was later known as Lili Elbe.

Elbe was one of the first recognised trans women and Paltrow will play her companion, Gerda Wegener, a photographer who encouraged the younger Einar to dress as a woman while posing for portraits.

Kidman won an Oscar for playing the mannish, dykey Virginia Woolf and Paltrow undeservedly won hers for playing an actress who dresses as a boy in Shakespeare In Love so they are both well credentialed for this new film from Tomas Alfredson, director of last year’s vampire hit Let The Right One In.

The Danish Girl will be filmed off a screenplay written by the ironically-named Lucinda Coxon.