Anne Hathaway Thriller Verity Set for Release in Two Weeks

The year of Anne Hathaway continues. Following The Devil Wears Prada 2, The Odyssey, and The End of Oak Street, Hathaway is adding another possible box office hit to that list. It is already drawing comparisons to the Sydney Sweeney-led The Housemaid.

Hathaway’s career resurgence has been one of the leading narratives in the entertainment industry this year. She spoke about the momentum at the London premiere of The Odyssey.

“I’m excited. This is very, very fun. It’s extremely surreal,” she told PEOPLE. “But I’m at an age and a moment in my career where I know stuff like this doesn’t come around very often, and certainly doesn’t last forever.”

“I’m just gonna surf this wave for as long as it lasts.”

Her range and willingness to take risks are on full display in her next film, which marks a genre pivot. Hathaway stars in Verity, an erotic thriller alongside Dakota Johnson and Josh Hartnett.

Hathaway as a silent and mysterious observer

Based on Colleen Hoover’s darkest and most polarizing novel, and directed by Michael Showalter from The Big Sick and Search Party, Verity follows Lowen Ashleigh. Johnson plays the struggling ghostwriter who is hired for what appears to be a dream job. She must complete the next novel of Verity Crawford, an author played by Hathaway who was gravely injured and is now unable to write. Verity’s husband, played by Hartnett, invites Lowen to move into their remote estate while she completes the novel, and she accepts.

As Lowen leafs through the pages of the unfinished manuscript, she uncovers dark and twisty secrets regarding Verity and her husband. She forms a complicated relationship with him while seemingly taking over Verity’s life.

“I’m basically the bad guy I think,” Johnson told Deadline. “It’s so fun.”

Johnson is one of the film’s producers and was attached to the project before knowing it was based on one of Hoover’s novels. She explained that she did not know what Verity was before receiving the script, noting that it is based on a Colleen Hoover novel that is quite popular and attracts a large audience.

Verity seems primed to repeat the success of 2025’s The Housemaid, which delivered a twisty erotic thriller about a love triangle between a married couple and their live-in employee. The presence of a mysterious, injured author brings Misery vibes to the screen, pointing toward another major box office win.

Colleen Hoover is a box office juggernaut

Hoover has written over 25 books and sold millions of copies throughout her career. Her novels have been adapted into three films so far, including It Ends With Us, Regretting You, and Reminders of Him. Most of these adaptations have become box office hits.

“This is going to be a big year,” Hoover told Entertainment Tonight in March. “We’ve got Reminders of Him on the 13th, and then I’ve got Verity coming out in October. I’m so, so thrilled for readers to see that one.”

Verity marks Showalter and Hathaway’s second collaboration after working together on The Idea of You, another book adaptation. Nick Antosca wrote the script, following a notable year as the showrunner of the Apple TV series Cape Fear. The cast also includes Ismael Cruz Córdova and Brady Wagner.

Verity premieres in theaters on Oct. 2.

Source: Polygon