Searchlight Pictures has officially acquired the package for Playmates, marking the feature screenwriting and directorial debut of filmmaker Lorraine Nicholson. Set in Los Angeles, the project reframes one of pop culture’s most mythologized environments through an unexpected coming-of-age lens, drawing loosely from Nicholson’s own unique childhood as the daughter of actor Jack Nicholson and model-actress Rebecca Broussard.
Having visited the Playboy Mansion regularly between her birth in 1990 and approximately age 11, Nicholson centers the narrative away from typical depictions of late-night parties or Hugh Hefner’s exploits. Instead, Playmates approaches the setting strictly from an adolescent point of view. The story follows Elle, played by Indiana Elle, a precocious 13-year-old who treats the estate as a second home. The dynamic shifts when Elle meets Anna, portrayed by Lily-Rose Depp, one of seven hopefuls competing for the title of Playmate of the Month. Across the story, the two strike a reciprocal pact: Elle assists Anna in her push for the centerfold cover, while Anna guides Elle through navigating an adolescent crush. Bill Pullman rounds out the setting as Hugh Hefner, providing historical presence while keeping the spotlight squarely on the bond between the two young women.
Depp, who is also executive producing alongside co-producers Alex Orlovsky and Duncan Montgomery of High Frequency Entertainment, shares a distinctive kinship with the material. As the daughter of Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis, she brings an innate understanding of growing up in proximity to high-profile Hollywood worlds. Depp steps into the co-lead role following dramatic performances in Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu, Eggers’ Werwulf, and the Zellner Brothers’ Alpha Gang.
For Nicholson, a 2012 Brown University graduate and alumna of the AFI Directing Workshop for Women, Playmates represents a major step forward from the festival circuit, where her 2017 short film Life Boat, starring Stephen Dorff, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. At Searchlight Pictures, the project is being shepherded by Vice President of Production Richard Ruiz and Creative Executive Cornelia Burleigh, reporting directly to Heads of Production and Development DanTram Nguyen and Katie Goodson-Thomas, positioning the coming-of-age drama within the specialty studio’s development slate.