Star and director of ‘Netflix’s most chilling’ true crime thriller is set to make an adaptation of a beloved novel.
Anna Kendrick has been named as the director for the upcoming film based on a bestselling book. It became beloved by many readers and a viral social media hit after it was published.
Now, the streaming giant is set to make a film version of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. Published in 2017 it was nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction that same year.
Written by Taylor Jenkins Reid, the book is split into seven parts that are all named after Hugo’s husbands as they chronicle her life during the marriages and affairs she experiences. According to Deadline, the film will follow a young journalist’s long awaited interview with Evelyn Hugo, an aging Hollywood starlet.
Similar to the novel, she pulls back the curtain on her seven marriages, and as she tells tales of Hollywood scandals, betrayals, and woe, she unveils shocking truths about her own life and the lives of everyone around her.
View 3 ImagesKendrick also starred in the film she directed(Image: Netflix)
On website Goodreads, one fan shared: “This is genuinely one of the most remarkable novels I have ever read. It is a favourite of the year, it will be a favourite of all time.” Another added: “Wow! This book came in and knocked me off my feet.”
The adaptation has been in the works at Netflix since 2022, with Kendrick being the third director attached to the production. Its script comes from Liz Tigelaar, who was the showrunner for miniseries Little Fires Everywhere, while she also served as a writer for shows like Once Upon A Time, Revenge and Nashville.
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This will be only the second film directed by Kendrick but she made quite the impression with her directorial debut, Woman of the Hour. The true crime thriller was also released by Netflix.
It proved by a a critical success, while it was also one of the most watched titles by subscribers upon its release. Landing on the platform back in 2024, it boasts a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Woman of the Hour was inspired by the crimes of Rodney Alcala. Kendrick also stars in the film as an aspiring actress who crosses paths with a prolific serial killer in 1970s LA after they’re cast on an episode of The Dating Game.
View 3 ImagesAnna Kendrick is set to direct again with a huge adaptation(Image: Netflix)
Fans called it “unsettling” and “one of the most chilling true crime thrillers on Netflix”. Kendrick has not commented on the upcoming project but has spoken out about her move into the director’s chair before.
Following the release of Woman of the Hour, she told Netflix: “My favourite thing about making my first movie was that every person from every department that I interacted with, I got to say to them, ‘This is the first time I’ve done this once, and it’s with you. So I’m hoping that I can ask you a million questions.’
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“I led with being vulnerable about what I felt like I didn’t know and what I needed to know and learn. That really helped me avoid, I think, the worst thing you can do, which is pretending you know what’s going on when you don’t. You can plan and plan and plan, and there will be something that like you could not possibly have accounted for.”
Woman of the Hour is streaming on Netflix, Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is coming soon.