The long-gestating biopic of beloved jazz singer Peggy Lee is finally gaining some ground as Golden Globe winner Michelle Williams (Fosse/Verdon) has signed on to star in the central role and reunite with director Todd Haynes (Dark Waters), according to Deadline.
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The film first began development at 20th Century Fox over a decade ago, with three-time Oscar nominee Nora Ephron (Sleepless in Seattle) penning a draft before her passing in 2012 and Reese Witherspoon (Little Fires Everywhere) set to star, though following Ephron’s death the studio put the film on hold. Witherspoon would later exit the project and with the Disney-Fox merger resulting in the latter studio’s 20th Century banner shuttering, the project was shelved, though sources report that MGM is currently in talks to acquire the film. It’s currently unclear if Ephron’s original script will still be used or if a new writer will be brought in to touch up the script or start all over.
Fever is set to be produced by Marc Platt, Witherspoon and Pamela Koffler and Christine Vachon through their Killer Films banner while five-time Grammy winner Billie Eilish is currently in negotiations to join as executive producer alongside her mother Maggie Baird and record label partner Justin Lubliner. Eilish recently took part in a celebration of Lee’s life and career in May 2020 and has frequently cited the late singer as one of the key inspirations for her music.
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The project will mark Haynes and Williams third time working together, with the Venom actress having previously starred in Haynes’ Bob Dylan biopic I’m Not There as a character modeled after Edie Sedgwick and his 2017 mystery drama Wonderstruck.
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