Billie Eilish in Talks to Make Her Movie Acting Debut in Director Sarah Polley's “The Bell Jar” Adaptation
Billie Eilish in Talks to Make Her Movie Acting Debut in Director Sarah Polley's “The Bell Jar” Adaptation
Tommy McArdleWed, March 11, 2026 at 8:26 PM UTC
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Billie Eilish on Feb. 1, 2026Credit: Etienne LAURENT / AFP via Getty -
Multiple outlets reported on Wednesday, March 11, that Billie Eilish will star in a movie adaptation of Sylvia Plath's 1963 novel The Bell Jar
The movie would mark Eilish's film acting debut; she previously appeared in one episode of the 2023 Prime Video series Swarm
Eilish's 3D concert documentary collaboration with James Cameron, Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft, will release in theaters on May 8
Billie Eilish is the latest pop star to try their hand at acting for the big screen.
On Wednesday, March 11, multiple outlets reported that Eilish, 24, is set to make her movie acting debut in director Sarah Polley's adaptation of author Sylvia Plath's classic 1963 novel The Bell Jar. Although this movie would function as Eilish's movie debut, the singer already has two Academy Awards for her work co-writing original songs for 2023's Barbie and 2021's James Bond entry No Time to Die with her brother and producer Finneas.
Polley, 47, will adapt Plath's novel herself and direct the in-the-works film for Focus Features, as multiple outlets reported. The director last released 2022's Women Talking, for which she won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay (the movie was also nominated for Best Picture.)
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
The Bell Jar is the only novel Plath, who died by suicide at 30 in 1963, published during her lifetime. "One of the most profound character portraits of mental illness, The Bell Jar tells the story of a brilliant young artist who is losing her mind," reads an official description of the novel. "Grappling with themes of feminism, societal pressures, and ambition, this is a deep dive into a mind capable of so much being gradually reduced to so little."
According to Deadline, Eilish will portray the movie's lead character Esther Greenwood, who struggles with her mental health after she takes on a position at a magazine in New York City. The outlet also reported that Julia Stiles, Kirsten Dunst, Dakota Fanning and Frankie Shaw have at times been involved with efforts to produce a movie or television adaptation of the novel over the last 20 years that never panned out.
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Billie Eilish on Dec. 1, 2025Credit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
Eilish made her television acting debut in an episode of the 2023 Prime Video series Swarm.
Fans of the "Bad Guy" singer who are eager to see her on screen once again won't even have to wait until The Bell Jar releases. Her 3D concert documentary collaboration with James Cameron, Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft, will release in theaters on May 8 and follow her making of 2024 LP Hit Me Hard and Soft, for which she won Song of the Year ("WILDFLOWER") at the 2026 Grammy Awards in February.
Polley, meanwhile, appeared as an actor recently when she played a fictional version of herself in one episode of Seth Rogen's Apple TV comedy series The Studio. She previously claimed at the 2023 Oscars that she was developing a separate movie project "based on my experiences going through awards season" that year.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
