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Jon M. Chu is setting the record straight on casting rumors for his Britney Spears biopic.

After reports claimed Ariana Grande, Sabrina Carpenter and Millie Bobby Brown were competing for the film’s leading role, Chu took to the social platform X on Sunday to shut down the rumor mill.

“None of this is true,” he wrote. “Sounds exciting but have not had one conversation about casting this movie yet. We are way too early in development. Sorry.”

The biopic, based on Spears’ bestselling memoir The Woman in Me, was announced last year, with Universal Pictures securing the rights.

Chu, known for Crazy Rich Asians and the Wicked film adaptation, is set to direct. Producer Marc Platt is developing the project.

Though casting has yet to begin, Chu has expressed excitement about bringing Spears’ story to the big screen.

“I’m very excited about it,” he told E! News in November. “I think there’s huge potential about telling a great story, one that she deserves.”

Spears first teased the project on social media in August, writing on X at the time, “Excited to share with my fans that I’ve been working on a secret project with #MarcPlatt. He’s always made my favorite movies … stay tuned.”

The Woman in Me was released in October 2023 and became an instant New York Times bestseller, selling more than 2.5 million copies in the U.S. as of August 2024.

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