Hurricana film to star GLOW’s Betty Gilpin as Anna Nicole Smith

Last Updated on February 8, 2022

Glow star Betty Gilpin is getting ready to go from the squared circle to avoiding paparazzi when she plays Anna Nicole Smith in Hurricana. With Holly Hunter also eyeing a lead role, the Hurricana film chronicles how in an attempt to save Smith’s life, her therapist, Khristine (Hunter), embarks on a 36-hour odyssey in which she unknowingly delivers the fatal blow. According to the film’s producers, the Hurricana film will investigate the “immense hurricane-like force that was Anna Nicole Smith, and the fateful string of events that led Anna to destroy everything in her path, including herself and those closest to her.” Francesca Gregorini (Killing Eve) will direct from a script penned by Rachel and Matt Sarnoff.

Smith became an object of many people’s affections after appearing in Playboy magazine. Later, she modeled for iconic fashion brands like Guess, H&M, Heatherette, and more. In 1994, Smith’s second marriage to 89-year-old billionaire J. Howard Marshall was brought into question by the public. Many assumed that Smith had married Marshall for his money, calling her a gold digger, among other names. When Marshall died in 1995, Smith began a difficult legal battle over a share of his estate. When it comes to screens both big and small, Smith appeared in Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult and The Anna Nicole Smith Show. Smith was 39 when she died of an accidental overdose of prescription drugs in Hollywood, Florida. She was 39.

Rory Koslow of Well Told Entertainment (Lost Girls), Cassian Elwes of Elevated (Mudbound), and Gregorini will serve as producers. Jere Hausfater, Rachel Sarnoff, and Matt Sarnoff will executive produce.

Gilpin is currently filming her role as Maureen Kane Dean for the TV series Gaslit, a modern take on the 1970s political Watergate scandal centering on untold stories and forgotten characters of the time. She’s also set to star as Lina in Three Women, an upcoming TV series that presents an intimate, moving, and uplifting portrait of real women reclaiming their lives from themselves.

What do you think about Gregorini’s Hurricana film? Were you a fan of Anna Nicole Smith back in the day, and do you think Betty Gilpin is a good fit for the role? I remember watching The Anna Nicole Smith Show when it was on TV and being disturbed by her untimely end. I hope the Hurricana film plans on honoring her memory respectfully, and I look forward to seeing Gilpin’s portrayal of such a vivacious spirit.