Amy Adams inThe Woman in the Window.Photo: Melinda Sue Gordon/Netflix
The Woman in the Windowhas finally hitNetflix— but the wild story behind the film’s journey to the streaming giant might be even more compelling than the plot itself.
“I felt intensely ashamed of my psychological struggles — they were my scariest, most sensitive secret,” a statement from Mallory read at the time, according toThe New Yorker.
Below, PEOPLE takes a look at some of the hurdlesThe Woman in the Window— starringAmy Adams,Julianne Moore,Gary Oldman,Brian Tyree Henry,Jennifer Jason Leigh,Wyatt RussellandAnthony Mackie— overcame to become a hotly-anticipated new Netflix film.
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The Woman in the Window.Melinda Sue Gordon/Netflix
Saying that this had happened “on numerous occasions in the past,” the author explained, “My motherbattled aggressive breast cancerstarting when I was a teenager; it was the formative experience of my adolescent life, synonymous with pain and panic.”
Mallory worked with psychotherapists for 15 years, and said in his statement that during that time he “was utterly terrified of what people would think of me if they knew — that they’d conclude I was defective in a way that I should be able to correct, or, worse still, that they wouldn’t believe me.”
“Dissembling seemed the easier path,” he added. “With the benefit of hindsight, I’msorry to have taken, or be seen to have taken, advantage of anyone else’s goodwill, however desperate the circumstances; that was never the goal.”
The Woman in the Windowauthor Dan Mallory, a.k.a. A. J. Finn.Eugene Gologursky/Getty
The “Confusing” Test Screenings
Speaking withEntertainment Weekly,the movie’s director,Joe Wright, said of the long process of making the film that included reshoots: “There were some plot points that people found a bit confusing — I would say possibly too opaque maybe.”
Despite the setbacks, Wright, 48, toldEWhe was “very interested to see how people respond to the film and I can’t wait for its release.”
“What I hope people will take away from this is a sense that our own fears can incarcerate us,” the filmmaker added. “And this is a story abouta woman who manages to overcome her own fears, and leave them behind her.”
The Woman in the Windowbook cover.William Morrow
After numerous delays,EWpreviously reported thatThe Woman in the Windowwould be coming to Netflixsometime in the first half of 2021.
Originally intended to open in theaters last May (and in October 2019 before that), Netflix purchased the film from Disney in August, according toEW.
The Woman in the Windowis out on Netflix now.
source: people.com
