Anne Hathaway steps into one of her most unsettling roles yet in Verity, the big-screen adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling psychological thriller. The film opens in Philippine cinemas on September 30.
Hathaway plays acclaimed author Verity Crawford, an enigmatic woman whose secrets pull a struggling writer into a dangerous web of ambition, attraction, and deception.
From Romance to Psychological Suspense
Director Michael Showalter previously worked with Hathaway on the film adaptation of The Idea of You. When it was time to cast the mysterious author at the heart of Verity, the Oscar-winning actress immediately came to mind.
Hathaway also serves as a producer on the film. She said she quickly understood the novel’s appeal after experiencing its page-turning momentum herself.
There’s so much propulsive energy to [Hoover’s] books, it’s like eating something really delicious and you can’t quite stop yourself. You just can’t, you want to get to the next page,” she explains. “When I came up for air at the end of it I thought, ‘Oh, I completely understand why people went crazy for this book.’
Watch the official trailer:
A Manuscript Filled With Disturbing Secrets
Verity follows Lowen Ashleigh (Dakota Johnson), a struggling writer hired to complete the unfinished books of celebrated author Verity Crawford.
Lowen moves into the Crawford family estate, where she discovers a collection of disturbing autobiographical notes written by Verity. The pages contain troubling claims involving Verity’s husband, Jeremy Crawford (Josh Hartnett), and raise questions about what truly happened inside their home.
As Lowen searches for answers, the boundaries between truth and fiction begin to disappear. She must determine who is manipulating whom while confronting her growing attraction to Jeremy and the career opportunity that brought her into the Crawfords’ lives.
Anne Hathaway Embraces Verity’s Complexity
Hartnett praised Hathaway’s thoughtful approach to playing his onscreen wife.
Annie is one of the most professional actors I’ve ever worked with, she’s very cerebral,” he says. “I find it comforting to be with someone who has a really clear idea of what they want to create with the character, but then she’s also fun, she wants to play as well.
Johnson was equally enthusiastic about working with Hathaway, both as a co-star and producer.
I’ve always been such a fan of hers and I loved working with her so much,” says Dakota Johnson. “We don’t really say much to each other onscreen, but in between takes we were always laughing and joking and having deep life talks. Or eating hot dogs – she had a hot dog cart brought to set one day, it was great.
Johnson added that Hathaway was committed to finding the strongest version of every scene.
She’s an incredible producer, and she’s always game to make sure we get the best version of the scene possible, she said.
Colleen Hoover Approves of the Casting
For Colleen Hoover, seeing Hathaway transform into Verity was a surreal experience.
She nailed it. Seeing all the different roles she’s playing and her range, I feel like this is a great movie to cap off the year of Anne Hathaway,” she says.
Hoover also revealed a personal connection to the actress.
The Princess Diaries is my husband’s favorite movie. He loves Anne Hathaway. I was so excited to tell him when she signed on, he and I still just feel like we pinch ourselves every day. It still feels surreal.
With Hathaway, Johnson, and Hartnett leading its tangled story of desire and deception, Verity invites audiences to question every confession and suspect every character.
Verity opens in Philippine cinemas on September 30. Distributed locally by Columbia Pictures PH.
