Universal Pictures has hired Liz Meriwether, creator of the sitcom "New Girl" and co-creator of "Dying for Sex", to write the screenplay for its planned Britney Spears biopic. The film will be directed by Jon M. Chu, who made "Wicked", and produced by Marc Platt, and is based on Spears' bestselling 2023 memoir "The Woman in Me". The hire marks a significant step forward for a project that has been in development since Universal acquired the memoir's rights in 2024.

Spears' memoir was a major commercial success, selling 1.1 million copies in its first week, with an audiobook narrated by Michelle Williams that became the fastest-selling in Simon & Schuster's history. Meriwether brings notable credentials, including a WGA award for "Dying for Sex" and a PGA award for "The Dropout", the series about Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, along with four Primetime Emmy nominations. Spears herself first teased the "secret project" on social media, praising Platt's past work. Universal declined to comment.