ENTERTAINMENTJon M. Chu Says He's Not Ready to Cast a Lead for Britney Spears Biopic: 'We're Just Trying to Get the Story Right'
Jon M. Chu isn't casting for the new movie just yet.
Sept. 23 2026, Published 8:10 a.m. ET
You can keep your self-tapes, folks, because Jon M. Chu isn't ready to cast his Britney Spears just yet.
The revered movie director revealed that, though he's grateful for the requests he receives, he's "not even thinking about casting right now."
Jon M. Chu Isn't Ready to Cast for the Britney Spears Biopic
Jon M. Chu isn't ready to cast the movie's lead.
Speaking to Variety at the opening of the George Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles, Chu explained that he can't think about casting right now.
"I get emails every day, hundreds of emails from people all around the world," he revealed. "Thank you for sending all your auditions. I am not even thinking about casting right now. We’re just trying to get the story right."
The Director Is Super Impressed With the Script So Far
Liz Meriwether is writing the script.
Things are still moving along; Chu said that the parts of the script by Liz Meriwether he has seen are amazing.
"She’s doing many beautiful things, and I may or may have not gotten glimpses of what she’s been doing, and it’s incredible," he said. "It’s incredible, profound, beautiful. And that’s all I can say about it. You already got me to say too much."
What We Know About the Britney Spears Biopic
- 'Failure Is Not an Option': Britney Spears 'Understands How High the Financial Stakes Are' Ahead of Her Biopic
- Addison Rae Doesn't Want to Portray Britney Spears in Biopic Because She Believes No One 'Deserves to Play' the Pop Music 'Icon'
- Expressing Herself: Madonna To Direct Her Biopic, Slams Andrew Lloyd Webber
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Marc Platt is producing the movie.
The biopic will be based on Spears' memoir The Woman in Me, which came out in 2023, and traces the star's life from her childhood, to her rising stardom, to her freedom from conservatorship and marriage to Sam Asghari.
Per Deadline, it will be directed by Chu, written by Meriwether (who worked on New Girl), and produced by Marc Platt (who has worked on La La Land and Cruella, and is the father of Dear Evan Hansen star Ben Platt).
Speaking to Vanity Fair in August, Liz said of her work on the biopic, "I’m really at the beginning of the process of thinking about it. But I do feel like what she experienced was pretty unique for the moment that it was happening, almost a perfect storm of attention and new forms of media."
Jon M. Chu's Previous Work
Jon M. Chu directed 'Wicked.'
There's a reason Jon was chosen to direct this highly anticipated film about one of pop culture's most major icons.
The filmmaker is best known for directing Wicked (2024) and Wicked: For Good (2025), as well as In the Heights (2021) and Crazy Rich Asians (2018).
