Jessica Chastain Shuts Down Fan Hopes That She’ll Star in ‘Evelyn Hugo’ Adaptation: “Zero Possibility”

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Jessica Chastain is divorcing herself from any lingering hopes for her potential involvement in an adaptation of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

During an interview with E! News that published online Thursday, the actress clarified that there is “zero possibility” that she would star in an onscreen version of author Taylor Jenkins Reid’s best-selling 2017 novel. Chastain had previously said that she would be open to landing a role in light of fan-generated campaigns for her to play character Celia St. James in the film adaptation that has been in development at Netflix.

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“But I love how excited the fans are,” Chastain said in the new interview. “When I was working on Broadway, every single day, they’d be outside, when I was signing, with the books. I just love how wonderful that fan base is.”

The Oscar winner continued, “I look forward to watching it, and I’m sorry to disappoint everyone out there.”

In April, Chastain took to social media to explain a viral video showing the star connecting with fans who were waiting for her after a performance of her Broadway revival of A Doll’s House. In the footage, Chastain was seen declining to sign a copy of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

In explaining her decision to opt out of the autograph, Chastain wrote that she doesn’t “sign books that I’m not attached to contractually.” She added, “Because it feels wrong, and like I’m taking credit for someone else’s work, I’ll say I can’t sign because I’m not doing it. That doesn’t mean I’ve read a bad script.”

During a January visit to Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live!, Chastain seemed open to the possibility of starring in an Evelyn Hugo adaptation, given fans’ interest in seeing this come to fruition. “I do know that there is an online thing about it,” the George & Tammy actress told host Andy Cohen about the fan campaigns. “Sure, send me a script.”

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