Jon M. Chu Reveals His Vision For The Britney Spears Biopic

Jon M. Chu has spent the past few years in Oz, directing the first Wicked film and preparing to finalize its sequel, Wicked: For Good, in the next year. But in due time, he’ll be going somewhere very different: Kentwood, Louisiana, and the Hollywood Hills to tell the story of Britney Spears.

In an interview with Bustle, Chu revealed his vision for the upcoming Spears biopic, which will be adapted from the singer’s 2023 memoir The Woman In Me. While he warned that he “can't say too much” about it as he’s still in “the very beginning stages” of developing the biopic, he explained his mission in telling Spears’ story and outlined his goals.

“She's always been this icon, but ultimately, especially more recently after reading her book, she'd become human to me,” he tells Bustle. “I think that is so beautiful. I hope to convey that humanity and the spectacle of what she is in all her glory.”

However, Chu also hopes to use Spears’ story to make a broader point about public attitudes toward our favorite musicians, especially female artists unfairly targeted in the media. “[I want to explore] what we expect from people that we think are ours,” he explains. “They're their own people, and we have to respect that.”

Jon’s Britney Fandom

In August, Spears teased that she was working with famed producer Marc Platt on a “secret project” moments before the biopic was announced. As first reported by The Ankler, Universal won the film rights to her 2023 memoir The Woman In Me, with Chu in the director’s chair and Platt attached to produce.

For Chu, landing the job was a full-circle moment because he grew up as a Spears fan. “I watched Britney before she was a solo act, when she was one of 12 acts at some radio station thing at The Shrine Auditorium,” he recalls. “I've loved her for many years. I've seen over seven concerts, which probably isn't a lot compared to other people.” (This writer beats him by one show.)

It seems that the love is mutual. In August, Spears wrote on Instagram that it was “flattering to be in such good company with Jon M. Chu” while sarcastically teasing the biopic. “The project I might be doing isn’t a biopic story... it’s a fictional musical where I play an extremely intelligent character !!!” she wrote with a winky face emoji.