After ‘This Is Me…Now’ Suddenly Lost Its Financial Backing, Jennifer Lopez Paid for the Whole Project Out of Her Own Pocket
Passion project? That’s an understatement.
![Jennifer Lopez's "This Is Me...Now"](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/BhGToGSomvGLqivoWwMZXX-415-80.jpg)
At last, Jennifer Lopez’s long-awaited passion project This Is Me…Now: A Love Story hits Amazon Prime on Friday—and to call it a passion project seems to sort of undersell it. Lopez believes so much in this piece of art—called a “cinematic odyssey” and a “narrative driven, cinematic original film,” per The Hollywood Reporter—that she paid for the project herself. “Everybody thought I was crazy when I said I would do it,” Lopez said.
When financing fell through for the project, Lopez opened her wallet to make it happen, even though her longtime producing partner Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas admitted “I was terrified.”
Goldsmith-Thomas and Lopez
Of the 65-minute film, Lopez said “We did have financing, and then that fell out. They pulled out at the last minute, and then it was that moment where you go, ‘Okay, do we just make a video, or do we go ahead and do this thing?’”
Lopez opted for full steam ahead. Though she was nervous, “I believe in her so much,” said Goldsmith-Thomas, who produces with Lopez through Nuyorican Prods. “She was open to anybody’s notes. She understood that she had to do it. She understood it was a fool’s errand to finance your own thing, and yet sometimes the fool is the genius because you’re following your heart, and this really is her heart.”
To call "This Is Me...Now" Lopez's passion project would be grossly underselling it
Goldsmith-Thomas told The Hollywood Reporter “it was Jennifer’s vision, and it was difficult to understand it,” she said. “It was difficult. Originally it was set up and then people didn’t really understand what it was as it was forming and reforming in her mind with Dave [Meyers, the filmmaker behind the movie].”
Lopez admitted that they went in over budget. “It was a challenging project in that way,” she said. “It’s like there could have never been enough money for the project. We didn’t have endless funds from a studio. This was a very independent project that I was self-financing. So it was very challenging producorial.” (Probably not shockingly, the piece never reveals exactly how much the project cost.)
The project will be able to stream on February 16
In addition to Lopez, famous faces like Jane Fonda, Trevor Noah, Sofia Vergara, Keke Palmer, Post Malone, Jay Shetty, and many others make appearances—and, oh yeah, some guy named Ben Affleck, who, you know, inspired the whole work, just like he did with This Is Me…Then 20 years ago, during their first run as a couple. After the record This Is Me…Now was finished, a simple music video or two just wouldn’t do, Lopez said. “I didn’t think it was right to throw out a video and do the normal thing,” she said. “I wanted to do something really different with this.”
Stay In The Know
Marie Claire email subscribers get intel on fashion and beauty trends, hot-off-the-press celebrity news, and more. Sign up here.
Lopez knew she didn’t want to just regurgitate the love story (x 2) of she and her now husband “because people know that story,” she said. “I wanted to do something different. So we embarked upon how to do that in a visual way with singing, dancing, and funny in life like way.”
The film will be released in tandem with her first album in nearly a decade
Goldsmith-Thomas calls the film “Comedy and tragedy,” she said. “And she [Lopez] was compelled to do it. She was compelled. I’ve never known anyone like this, seen anyone like this, and all you could do as her partner and her friend was hang on.”
This Is Me…Now: A Love Story is out February 16, released in tandem with her first album in a decade. Despite hurdles, “I wanted to see this vision through,” Lopez said.
And so she did.
Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.
-
Zendaya Delivers a Podium-Worthy Pre-Olympics Gown
She's shining brighter than the City of Lights.
By Halie LeSavage Published
-
'Love Island USA' Star Kenny Rodriguez Is Not "Playing Around" with His and JaNa Craig's Romance Outside of the Villa
The prince and princess of season 6 have remained the cutest couple since filming wrapped.
By Quinci LeGardye Published
-
So Many Celebrity Beauty Favorites Are in Nordstrom's Anniversary Sale
Shop Jennifer Lopez, Meghan Markle, and Kaia Gerber's beloved picks.
By Julia Marzovilla Published
-
The Idea That Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s Marital Issues Are About Her Superstar-Level Fame “Isn’t True”
“There are deeper issues.”
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Jennifer Lopez’s Closeness with Ben Affleck’s Eldest Child Violet Is “Tricky” for Him Amid Lopez and Affleck’s Marital Strain
“They are trying to be strong, but it is a sad time for everyone.”
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Today Is Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s Second Wedding Anniversary, and They’re “Focusing on Loved Ones” During Their Time Apart
The two are “trying to be as amicable as possible” right now.
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck's $68 Million Home Is on Zillow Now, Just FYI
Heard you were looking to get on the property ladder?
By Iris Goldsztajn Published
-
There’s Still a “Sliver of Hope” That Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck Will Reconcile, Even Though They Are “Doing Their Own Thing Right Now”
Despite taking space from one another this summer, their wedding rings remain on, as does, apparently, hope for a future together.
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Jennifer Garner Has Been an "Unexpected Ally" to Jennifer Lopez Amid Ben Affleck Divorce Rumors, Source Claims
Jennifers supporting Jennifers!
By Iris Goldsztajn Published
-
Jennifer Lopez’s Mother and Sisters Are Reportedly Encouraging Her to “Get On with Her Life” Apart from Husband Ben Affleck
“It’s taken too much of a toll on her.”
By Rachel Burchfield Published
-
Jennifer Lopez Flashes Megawatt Smile in the Hamptons as Ben Affleck Reportedly Celebrates the Fourth in Los Angeles
She's positively glowing.
By Iris Goldsztajn Published