Widow Clicquot is based on the true story of the “Grande Dame of Champagne,” Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin (1777–1866) who, at the age of 20, became Madame Clicquot after marrying the scion of a winemaking family. Though their marriage was arranged, a timeless love blossomed between Barbe-Nicole (Haley Bennett) and her unconventional, erratic husband, François (Tom Sturridge). After her husband's untimely death, Barbe-Nicole flouts convention by assuming the reins of the fledgling wine business they had nurtured together. Steering the company through dizzying political and financial reversals, she defies her critics and revolutionizes the champagne industry to become one of the world's first great entrepreneurs.