Anne Hathaway Eyed to Star in WB’s ‘Sesame Street’ Movie

Anne Hathaway is being eyed to star in Warner Bros.’ live-action Sesame Street movie and the Oscar winner is in early talks to take on the role, Collider has exclusively learned.

Jonathan Krisel, the Emmy-nominated co-creator of Portlandia, is set to direct the film, which is expected to be a musical. Shawn Levy is producing with Michael Aguilar, and Warner Bros. is co-financing the film with MGM. WB exec Jesse Ehrman will oversee the project for the studio, which developed the movie with Sesame Workshop, which holds the rights to the beloved children’s show. Levy has been working on the project since 2012, when 20th Century Fox held the rights.

Mike Rosolio penned the first draft, while Chris Galletta wrote the most recent version, according to a Variety report from September. It’s unclear what the plot of the movie is, but Hathaway is circling the role of Sally, which happens to be the name of the girl who appeared on the very first episode of the show, wherein longtime resident Gordon Robinson gives Sally a tour of Sesame Street and introduces her to Muppet characters such as Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch. It’s not long before fan favorites like Bert and Ernie as Cookie Monster also appear. The education series premiered in 1969 and quickly amassed millions of young fans who are now parents eager to share the show and its message with their own children.

Hathaway actually has a history with Sesame Street, as she appeared in its 2007 holiday special Elmo’s Christmas Countdown, in which she sings “I Want a Snuffleupagus for Christmas” with Big Bird and Snuffy.

Warner Bros. is keen to develop more family films outside of its Fantastic Beasts and LEGO franchise silos, and Sesame Street is a well-known IP that certainly fits the bill. It also strikes me as a good fit for Hathaway, who has been looking to do a family film in the near-future, having recently been attached to star in a live-action Barbie movie when that project was at Sony. Barbie has since moved to Warner Bros., which promptly attached Margot Robbie to star. Frankly, Hathaway’s charming talents seem better suited for Sesame Street, but it’ll all come down to whether the actress can make a deal. She doesn’t have one… yet.

Of course, it helps that Hathaway has a strong relationship with Warner Bros., having recently starred in its summer blockbuster Ocean’s 8, as well as The Intern, Get Smart, The Dark Knight Rises, and, technically, Interstellar. Keep in mind that MGM is co-financing the Sesame Street movie, and Hathaway will soon be seen alongside Rebel Wilson in the MGM comedy The Hustle.

Hathaway won an Oscar for Les Misérables and was nominated for Rachel Getting Married. She recently wrapped Dee Rees‘ crime drama The Last Thing He Wanted with Ben Affleck and Willem Dafoe, and she next stars opposite Matthew McConaughey (again) in Steven Knight‘s thriller Serenity. Hathaway also recently signed on to join the starry ensemble of John Carney‘s Amazon anthology series Modern Love. She’s represented by CAA and Management 360, and a representative for the actress did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Warner Bros. had no comment.