Sorry, But: Jessica Chastain Won't Be in 'The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo'

Fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid's The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo have a lot of opinions on who should play the two Old Hollywood actresses at the heart of the adaptation of the novel, Evelyn Hugo and Celia St. James. And perhaps no call has been more fervent than the one to cast Jessica Chastain as Celia. Alas, those dreams have officially been squashed by the actress herself, after months of speculation and playful interest on her part.

In a new report from E! News, Chastain admitted that there's "zero possibility" she'll play the part. "But I love how excited the fans are. When I was working on Broadway, every single day, they'd be outside—when I was signing—with the books. I just love how wonderful that fan base is. I look forward to watching it and I'm sorry to disappoint everyone out there!"

Chastain has been courting intrigue and the fandom around casting her in the role since at least January of this year, when the actress went onto Watch What Happens Live. "I do know there is an online thing about it," she said before adding that someone should, "send me a script."

Of course, nothing is out of the question until casting announcements have been made—so go ahead! Be delusional! Anything can happen!—but either way, we know the adaptation is going to be good if the immensely talented Leslye Headland (Russian Doll, Sleeping With Other People, aka one of the best romcoms of all time) is directing it.

Alicia Lutes is a freelance writer, essayist, journalist, humorist, and screenwriter based in Los Angeles. She has written extensively on culture, entertainment, the craft of comedy, and mental health. Her work has been featured in places such as Vulture, Playboy, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, MTV, Cosmopolitan, Rotten Tomatoes, Bustle, Longreads, and more. She was also the creator/former host of the web series Fangirling, and currently fosters every single dog she can.