Kim Novak Rejects Sydney Sweeney for Scandalous Biopic

Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Kim Novak said she would never have approved Sydney Sweeney playing her in the film and criticized Sweeney’s appearance as overly sexual.
- Kim Novak warned the movie would focus too much on sex, stating there’s "no way it wouldn’t be a sexual relationship because Sydney Sweeney looks sexy all the time."
- Kim Novak disclosed her bipolar diagnosis (revealed in 2013) and advised that bipolar actors experience intensified joy and pain.
- Colman Domingo announced his directorial debut with "Scandalous!" and planned to film in summer 2025 after completing Euphoria Season 3 with Sweeney.
- Colman Domingo described the project as a "fractured love story" about love, privacy, and public scrutiny.
- Miramax reportedly backed out of the project, contributing to the film’s production limbo (as noted in comments).
- David Jonsson is cast as Sammy Davis Jr. in the film, which portrays Novak’s 1957 relationship with the entertainer.
Why it matters: Novak’s outright rejection of Sweeney’s casting threatens the financing and schedule of Colman Domingo’s debut, leaving the biopic of her 1957 romance with Sammy Davis Jr. in limbo and risking losses for the director, producers, and any studio that had backed the project.
Ask SkimNews




