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Liz Meriwether to write Universal’s Britney Spears biopic as studio reteams Wicked’s Jon M. Chu and Marc Platt
The Apex Times

THE APEX TIMES

Culture/The Apex Times/Jul 7, 12:29 PM EDT

Liz Meriwether to write Universal’s Britney Spears biopic as studio reteams Wicked’s Jon M. Chu and Marc Platt

The studio has hired TV and film writer Liz Meriwether to pen the screenplays for its Britney Spears biopic, based on the singer’s memoir The Woman in Me. The project reunites director Jon M. Chu and producer Marc Platt, with details of the studio’s response still pending.

2 min readEditor-approved Apex article

Universal is moving forward with its planned Britney Spears biopic after hiring writer Liz Meriwether to pen the screenplay, The Hollywood Reporter reported July 7, citing studio plans for the project. Universal has not offered a public comment on the hiring, according to the same report.

The project will be written by Meriwether, whose recent work includes the Hulu crime drama The Furious and whose prior credits include New Girl and Dying for Sex. She is represented by WME and McKuin Frankel, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Universal is also reuniting a key creative team from the Wicked films. The Hollywood Reporter said Jon M. Chu is attached to direct, and Marc Platt is set to produce. Page Six also reported that Meriwether has been tasked with writing an early draft for the film and with continuing the adaptation work stemming from the memoir.

The biopic is set to be based on Spears’ 2023 bestselling memoir The Woman in Me. The Hollywood Reporter said the book traces Spears’ career from teenage pop stardom through multiple high-profile relationships and into her public mental health crisis and conservatorship, which she later spent years seeking to end. The memoir’s publishing history and sales were also described in the Hollywood Reporter report, including that it was published by Gallery Books on Oct. 24, 2023.

The Hollywood Reporter also noted that the memoir became a fast-selling title across print and audio formats, and it described the audiobook as being read by Michelle Williams. Page Six added that multiple studios had shown interest in the project before Universal landed it, and said the screenplay work is tied to continuing adaptation of The Woman in Me.

The timing and scope of production were not detailed in the reports, and Universal’s timeline for release was not specified. Still, the hiring of Meriwether positions the project to proceed through screenwriting and development stages, with Chu and Platt’s producing and directing roles remaining central as the studio advances its adaptation of Spears’ memoir.

Why It Matters

  • Screenwriter hiring is a key step in film development, helping set how Spears’ memoir will be adapted for a major studio feature.
  • A creative team led by Jon M. Chu and Marc Platt suggests Universal will use established production structures as it moves the biopic from early development toward screenplay refinement.
  • Adapting The Woman in Me means the film’s narrative framework centers on the memoir’s account of Spears’ career and conservatorship history, affecting how widely familiar public events may be portrayed in entertainment form.
  • The memoir’s wide commercial reach described in the reports underscores why Universal is continuing work on another major music-star biopic in a market that has shown appetite for celebrity life stories.
  • With Universal declining comment in the reporting, publicly available details on budgets, casting plans, and release timing remain limited as development continues.

Sources

Key Facts

  • Universal has hired Liz Meriwether to write a Britney Spears biopic screenplay, The Hollywood Reporter reported on July 7.
  • The project is based on Spears’ 2023 memoir The Woman in Me, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
  • Jon M. Chu is attached to direct and Marc Platt is set to produce, with Universal reuniting the Wicked film creative team, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
  • The Hollywood Reporter said Universal had no comment on the news, and additional details about production timing were not provided in the reports.
  • The reports describe Meriwether’s TV and film background, including New Girl and Dying for Sex, and her work on The Furious for Hulu, per The Hollywood Reporter.
  • Page Six reported Meriwether was brought in to pen an early draft and that Meriwether is completing an adaptation effort tied to The Woman in Me.