The Illusionist is a 2006 American romantic mystery film written and directed by Neil Burger and starring Edward Norton, Paul Giamatti, and Jessica Biel.

During one performance, he encounters the adult Sophie and learns that she is expected to marry the Crown Prince Leopold, who, it is rumored, is brutal towards women and even murdered one.

However, Sophie's death made him realize that the Crown Prince is unfit to rule, so he changed his mind and informed the Emperor and the Austro-Hungarian General Staff of Leopold's conspiracy.

The boy gives him a package containing Eisenheim's notebook about the Orange Tree trick, which Uhl had been unable to figure out.

The script was based loosely on "Eisenheim the Illusionist", a short story by Steven Millhauser from his 1990 collection The Barnum Museum.

Magic consultancy and technical advice during the production was supplied by James Freedman, Ricky Jay, Michael Weber, and Scott Penrose.

"[7] Aaron Johnson, who plays the teenage Eduard in the beginning of the film, also learned how to do the ball trick seen in those scenes.

The city of Vienna is represented in the film by Tábor and Prague, while the scenes set in Eisenheim's childhood village were shot in Český Krumlov.

The Crown Prince's castle is actually the historical fortress of Konopiště (near Benešov), formerly the home of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria.

As of June 29, 2008 the film had earned worldwide box office receipts of $87,892,388, including $39,868,642 in the United States, exceeding its reported $16.5 million budget.

The consensus reads, "The Illusionist is an engrossing, well-crafted story of mystery, magic and intrigue that is certain to enchant, if not hypnotize, audiences.

"[13] Stephen Holden, in his review for The New York Times, praised Edward Norton's role, which, according to him, "perfectly fits his disturbing inscrutability".

[15] Roger Ebert rated 3.5/4 and wrote that, "The movie sets up a fascinating parable about art, religion and politics, and the misty boundaries between them".

[18] On October 28, 2024, it was announced that composer Andrew Lloyd Webber will be adapting the film into a stage musical with Chris Terrio as book writer and Bruno Major as lyricist.