Melissa McCarthy and “The Diary of a Teenage Girl” helmer Marielle Heller are joining forces for “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”, a dark comedy based on Lee Israel’s memoir of the same name.
According to Variety, the “Ghostbusters” star will play Israel, a former writer of celebrity profiles. When she was unable to secure further gigs in her field, Israel hatched an audacious plan: to forge letters from late writers and actors, and sell them. Her wildly inventive solution to her financial woes worked — at first. Israel eventually faced legal consequences for the crimes. Heller will direct a script from Nicole Holofcener (“Enough Said”).
If the project sounds familiar but the names attached register as news, that’s because Julianne Moore originally signed on to portray Israel. She left over creative differences. Holofcener was meant to direct, but can no longer fill that role due to scheduling.
Heller won an Independent Spirit Award for First Feature for “The Diary of a Teenage Girl.” She’s slated to write and direct a feature based on HBO’s award-winning gay rights doc “The Case Against 8.” You can catch McCarthy in “The Boss,” playing in theaters now. “Ghostbusters” opens July 15.
