“Women Talking” filmmaker Sarah Polley will write and direct the movie based on Sylvia Plath’s beloved novel.

Billie Eilish to make film acting debut in *The Bell Jar *adaptation from Oscar-winning filmmaker

"Women Talking" filmmaker Sarah Polley will write and direct the movie based on Sylvia Plath's beloved novel.

By Shania Russell

Shania Russell

Shania Russell is a news writer at *, *with five years of experience. Her work has previously appeared in SlashFilm and Paste Magazine.

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March 11, 2026 3:57 p.m. ET

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Billie Eilish. Credit:

ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty

Billie Eilish is ready for her close-up.

After scooping up two Oscar wins for her musical contributions to *Barbie* and *No Time to Die*, the singer-songwriter is in talks to make her feature film acting debut. Eilish is set to star in Sarah Polley's adaptation of Sylvia Plath's seminal novel, *The Bell Jar*.

The film marks Polley's first since 2022's *Women Talking*, the emotional ensemble drama that won her the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. Polley, an actress herself, is also known for directing *Away From Her* and* Take This Waltz*, writing 2017's *Alias Grace* miniseries, and playing herself on an episode of *The Studio*.

Billie Eilish and Sarah Polley.

Daniele Venturelli/Getty; Mike Coppola/Getty

Deadline and the InSneider first reported news of the project, which is being produced by Joy Gorman Wettels *(Little House on the Prairie, 13 Reasons Why)*, Plan B Entertainment, and StudioCanal with Focus Features set to distribute.

Eilish has previously been the subject of several documentaries and concert films — but this won't be her first time acting. She also appeared in the Prime Video series *Swarm* from Donald Glover and Janine Nabers. The performance earned her the People’s Choice Award for TV Performance of the Year and a supporting performance nod at the Independent Spirit Award.

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The "Birds of a Feather" singer is also set to expand her filmography a little more with her upcoming concert doc, *Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft – The Tour*. This film will also hail from an acclaimed Academy Award-winning filmmaker: *Titanic* and *Avatar* director James Cameron.

'The Bell Jar' by Sylvia Plath.

Harper Perennial Modern Classics

*The Bell Jar* is the only novel from Plath, an acclaimed writer best known for her poetry. The semi-autobiographical book chronicles the derailing life of Esther Greenwood, a talented undergraduate student who begins an internship with a New York City magazine. But despite the glamour and excitement of big-city life, Esther can't seem to feel the joy experienced by her peers and instead struggles through a gradual mental breakdown. The character's mental illness famously parallels Plath's own experiences with depression: the author died by suicide a month after publishing the 1963 novel under a pseudonym.

An adaption of *The Bell Jar *was previously in the works with Kirsten Dunst attached to direct and Dakota Fanning set to star. The film would have marked Dunst's feature film directional debut but the project eventually fell through.

Dunst confirmed to ** in 2019 that the film would not be going forward with her in the director's chair. "I never owned [the rights], so it went away for me," she said. "It went to other hands."

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Source: “EW Movie”