Emma Thompson’s screenplay of Effie will finally go into production later this year, after a bumpy ride of getting the film off the ground. Effie was stuck in a legal battle earlier this year because of a copyright infringement.

Playwright Gregory Murphy took the film’s producer to court citing copyright infringement. A 1999 and 2005 play called “The Countess” hit stages to outstanding reviews about the same subject matter in Effie. Murphy thought Effie’s script was too close to his “The Countess” and started a legal battle. Thompson claims that she did not have access to Murphy’s work and did not copy it.

Effie is about the true story of Effie Gray, the 17-year-old wife of Victorian artist, architect, poet and political thinker John Ruskin. Ruskin wouldn’t have sex with Gray, for reasons kind of unknown, and remained a virgin until she met Ruskin’s protegé, painter, John Everett Millais.

Saorise Ronan was slated to play the role of Effie Gray and Orlando Bloom was to play her lover, John Everett Millais, but delays and scheduling conflicts ruled them out. 17-year-old Dakota Fanning will play Effie and The Boat That Rocked actor, Tom Sturridge will play Millais.

According to IMDB, Effie is in pre-production and is going into production in October. The film is slated to premiere in 2012 at the Venice Film Festival. [Source]