Netflix taps Anna Kendrick for Evelyn Hugo

Anna Kendrick has been tapped to direct Netflix’s film adaptation of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo,” according to reports published on June 2. The move makes Kendrick the third director publicly attached to the long-developing project after Leslye Headland and Maggie Betts. Netflix announced the adaptation in 2022, with Liz Tigelaar attached to write and Liza Chasin and Brad Mendelsohn producing. ### How did this update surface on June 2? What’s on Netflix reported on June 2 that Kendrick is set to direct the film, describing her as the project’s third director. Deadline and TheWrap separately reported the same development on June 2, confirming that Kendrick had come aboard the adaptation. (whats-on-netflix.com) Deadline reported the move as an exclusive, while TheWrap said Maggie Betts and Leslye Headland had previously been attached to direct. None of the June 2 reports said Netflix had announced casting, a production start date or a release window. ### Who was attached before Kendrick? Netflix said in 2022 that Leslye Headland would direct the feature adaptation, with Tigelaar writing and Taylor Jenkins Reid and Margaret Chernin serving as executive producers. (whats-on-netflix.com) That announcement came after Netflix first said in 2022 that it had acquired the bestselling novel for a feature film adaptation. (deadline.com) Deadline later reported that Maggie Betts had replaced Headland as director and would co-write the script with Tigelaar. TheWrap’s June 2 report said both Betts and Headland were previously attached before Kendrick’s hiring. ### What is Kendrick’s track record with Netflix? Kendrick made her feature directorial debut with “Woman of the Hour,” a Netflix release that What’s on Netflix cited in reporting her hiring. (about.netflix.com) The June 2 coverage framed that film as her first directing credit for the streamer. The June 2 reports did not say whether Kendrick would also appear on screen in “Evelyn Hugo.” They identified her only as the incoming director. (deadline.com) ### What has Netflix already said about the film itself? Netflix’s original project announcement described “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” as the story of reclusive Hollywood legend Evelyn Hugo, who chooses an unknown reporter, Monique Grant, to tell her life story. (whats-on-netflix.com) A later Netflix release said the story unfolds through a long-awaited interview in which Evelyn recounts her seven marriages and Hollywood scandals. (deadline.com) The source material was published in 2017 and became a bestseller. TheWrap reported on June 2 that the novel has spent more than 120 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, underscoring why the adaptation has drawn sustained attention even without announced cast members. ### What still has not been announced? (about.netflix.com) June 2 coverage did not identify actors for Evelyn Hugo, Monique Grant or Celia St. James. The reports also did not include a filming start, production location or release date. Netflix’s next public milestone on the project is likely to be a casting or production announcement. (thewrap.com) As of June 2, the named participants publicly attached were Kendrick as director, Tigelaar as writer, Chasin and Mendelsohn as producers, and Reid and Margaret Chernin as executive producers. (deadline.com) (whats-on-netflix.com)