Overview
- Novak, in remarks published Sunday by The Times and echoed across outlets, said she would never have approved Sweeney to play her.
- She argued Sweeney "always looks sexy" and said the choice would make the story appear sexual, adding that the actress "sticks out above the waist too much."
- Reports say the film remains in pre‑production and has been put on hold after the comments, with no start date or timeline announced.
- Sweeney is attached as star and producer, and she says she recruited Colman Domingo to direct his first feature, with David Jonsson set to play Sammy Davis Jr.
- The planned film would revisit a 1950s interracial relationship that Hollywood treated as taboo, a context that has fueled debate over image, race, and who shapes the historical narrative.