Claim: Ralph Fiennes is a person who acts.

Great Expectations is a 2012 British film adaptation of Charles Dickens ' novel of the same name . The film was directed by Mike Newell , with the adapted screenplay by David Nicholls , and stars Jeremy Irvine , Helena Bonham Carter , Holliday Grainger , Ralph Fiennes and Robbie Coltrane . It was distributed by Lionsgate .   Nicholls adapted the screenplay after being asked to work on it by producers Elizabeth Karlsen and Stephen Woolley , with whom he had worked on And When Did You Last See Your Father ? . Helena Bonham Carter was asked to appear as Miss Havisham by Newell , and accepted the role after some initial apprehension , while Irvine was initially intimidated by the thought of appearing on screen as Pip .   The premiere of the film closed the BFI London Film Festival in 2012 , although it had already been previewed earlier in the year at the Toronto International Film Festival . It was released in the UK on 30 November 2012 .