The 29-year-old actress will lead the cast in director Evan Cabnet’s production about a woman who has an affair with her husband’s friend, reports contactmusic.com.
The story is based on the 1867 novel penned by French writer Zola, who turned it into a play in 1873.
Knightley will play the role previously played on the big screen by actress Simone Signoret in a 1953 film version, while Elizabeth Olsen was seen in the title role in in last year’s release “In Secret”.