Emma is a 1996 period romantic comedy film based on the 1815 novel of the same name by Jane Austen. Written and directed by Douglas McGrath, and produced by Steven Haft and Patrick Cassavetti, the film stars Gwyneth Paltrow as the eponymous lead, alongside Toni Collette, Alan Cumming, Ewan McGregor, Jeremy Northam, Greta Scacchi, Juliet Stevenson and Polly Walker.