Film And TV
12 Mar 26

Billie Eilish set to make film debut with adaptation of Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar

Billie Eilish set to make film debut with adaptation of Sylvia Plath’s <i>The Bell Jar</i>

Billie Eilish. Copyright NPR.

A previous adaptation had been made in 1979 starring Marilyn Hassett, but it received negative reviews.

Grammy winner Billie Eilish is set to land the leading role for a film adaptation of Sylvia Plath's novel The Bell Jar.

The announcement comes following Eilish's Grammy win for her single 'Wildflower', which earned Song Of The Year at the 68th annual Grammys. She is now the first-ever artist to win Song of the Year three times.

Eilish previously made her acting debut in the 2022 Amazon Prime Video satirical thriller series, Swarm. The performance earned her the TV Performance of the Year at the 2024 People’s Choice Awards and also earned her a nomination for Best Supporting Performance in a New Scripted Series at the Independent Spirit Awards the same year.

Set to be directed by writer-filmmaker Sarah Polley (Women Talking), The Bell Jar is the sole novel written by Plath in 1963 and was originally published under the pseudonym "Victoria Lucas". The novel was released one month before Plath's suicide at the age of 30. The semi-autobiographical novel chronicles main character Esther Greenwood's decline into mental illness during an internship in New York City in the 1950s.

Eilish will release her HIT ME HARD AND SOFT: THE TOUR (LIVE IN 3D) concert film co-directed by James Cameron later this month.

This will be the pop singer's 3rd film, following the release of her documentary Billie Eilish: World's A Little Blurry and her first concert film Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter To Los Angeles in 2021.