It was announced last year that Donald Glover and Phoebe Waller-Bridge would be teaming up for a television adaptation of Mr. & Mrs. Smith for Amazon. Unfortunately, Phoebe Waller-Bridge exited the project a few months later due to creative differences but we now know who will be replacing her. In an interview with himself in Interview Magazine, Donald Glover revealed that PEN15 star Maya Erskine would be starring alongside him.
“She’s dope,” Donald Glover said. “It’s exciting. I really love the show. I’m writing the finale now.” Although Phoebe Waller-Bridge will no longer be starring in the Mr. & Mrs. Smith series, she remained involved as the co-creator and executive producer. Glover confirmed that the split was due to creative differences but says their parting was amicable. “I still like her,” Glover said. “I assume she still likes me.” Francesca Sloane, who collaborates with Glover on Atlanta, is also involved as co-creator, showrunner, and executive producer.
When the project was first announced, Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke said, “Talk about the dream team! Donald and Phoebe are two of the most talented creators and performers in the world. It’s truly a dream for us, as it will be for our global audience, to have these two forces of nature collaborating as a powerhouse creative team. ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith’ is an iconic property, and we can’t wait to see how Donald, Phoebe and Francesca make it their own. We’re thrilled to be working with them, and with such great partners at New Regency.” The 2005 film, which was directed by Doug Liman and penned by Simon Kinberg, starred Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie as a bored upper-middle-class married couple who were actually assassins belonging to competing agencies who had been assigned to kill each other. Mr & Mrs. Smith was a major box-office success at the time and was even the start of the real-life relationship between Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Much like Donald Glover, who played Lando Calrissian in Solo: A Star Wars Story, Maya Erskine is also a member of the Star Wars family. The actress will next be seen in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series on Disney+ on May 27, 2022.