Paul Feig is not slowing down for a second. The director behind one of 2025’s biggest box office surprises is already set for his next dark, provocative thriller, and Hollywood just paid millions for it before the story even reaches bookstore shelves.

20th Century Studios has won a heated auction for “Persona,” a novella by “Arrow” co-creator Marc Guggenheim. The studio secured the rights for a seven-figure sum and has attached Feig to direct in what industry insiders are already calling a modern version of one of cinema’s most iconic psychological thrillers ever made.

20th Century Studios Wins a Fierce Bidding War

“Persona” did not land quietly. The as-yet-unpublished novella sparked an intense bidding war the moment it reached the marketplace, pulling in serious interest from multiple competing studios.

20th Century Studios ultimately came out on top, locking in the rights with a seven-figure deal in what is shaping up to be one of the more competitive book-to-film auctions in recent memory.

The picture will be produced by Laura Fischer, Paul Feig’s producing partner at their Pretty Dangerous Pictures banner. SVP Sarah Shepard will oversee the project on the studio side.

No cast, no synopsis, and no character details have been officially confirmed. The studio is keeping the full creative concept sealed tight for now, which only adds to the building buzz around this project.

A Modern Spin on the Fatal Attraction Formula

While the full plot of “Persona” remains a secret, insiders are not entirely staying quiet. The description circulating in Hollywood is impossible to ignore.

“A Fatal Attraction-style thriller with a very modern twist.”

The original “Fatal Attraction” hit cinemas in 1987, directed by Adrian Lyne. Michael Douglas starred as a married man whose brief extramarital affair spirals into a harrowing obsession. Glenn Close played the scorned woman whose refusal to be dismissed turns into something terrifying. The film earned six Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and redefined what a psychological thriller could be at its most raw and disturbing.

If “Persona” is following that same structural blueprint, audiences can expect a story built on dangerous desire and escalating consequences. An affair turns toxic. Someone pushes too far. The psychological and physical tension reaches a breaking point.

It is also worth noting that Paramount+ attempted a serialized “Fatal Attraction” remake in 2023, starring Lizzy Caplan and Joshua Jackson. But a full theatrical feature with this kind of heat behind it is a very different proposition from a streaming series.

Why Paul Feig Is the Right Director for This Job

Feig did not stumble into this genre. He built his way here, film by film.

He first rose to fame in comedy, creating “Freaks and Geeks” for television and then directing the 2011 breakout hit “Bridesmaids.” Over time, he slowly pushed into darker, more layered storytelling with films like “A Simple Favor” and its sequel, sharpening his instincts for tension and deception along the way.

Then came “The Housemaid” in December 2025, and the results were stunning. Here is how that film performed:

• Production budget: $35 million
• Global box office: Approximately $400 million
• Rotten Tomatoes critics score: 73%
• Career milestone: Became the highest-grossing film of Feig’s directing career, surpassing “Bridesmaids”
• Sydney Sweeney record: Her biggest leading role box office performance to date

The film did not just succeed commercially. It made a powerful case that adult-oriented, female-skewing thrillers can still dominate theaters at the highest level.

On the strength of that success, Feig is now in pre-production on the sequel, “The Housemaid’s Secret,” which Lionsgate has set for a December 17, 2027 theatrical release. Kirsten Dunst has already joined the cast alongside returning stars Sydney Sweeney and Michele Morrone, with the film based on the second book in Freida McFadden’s bestselling trilogy.

Somehow, while managing that entire production, Feig still found time to commit to “Persona.” That level of creative demand says everything about his standing in Hollywood right now.

Marc Guggenheim Is Having a Career-Defining Moment

The writer behind “Persona” is no stranger to major moves in the industry.

Marc Guggenheim is the co-creator and executive producer of “Arrow” and one of the key architects of the sprawling Arrowverse franchise. His television credits span “Legends of Tomorrow,” “Supergirl,” and “Law and Order.” On the film side, he has written the 2011 “Green Lantern” and “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters” in 2013. He is also a respected comic book writer with credits across both Marvel and DC.

The “Persona” deal marks Guggenheim’s second seven-figure sale within just the past six months. His first was “An Innocent Girl,” a thriller he co-wrote with Michael Mohan that is currently in active production. That film boasts a star-studded cast including Kerry Washington, James Marsden, Chloe East, and Colman Domingo, with the finished film headed to Netflix.

On top of both projects, Guggenheim is also developing a series called “The Measure” for NBC in partnership with Higher Ground Productions. Two blockbuster deals in half a year while simultaneously running a third project. Hollywood clearly cannot get enough of what he is putting out right now.

The Erotic Thriller Genre Is Back and Bigger Than Ever

“Persona” is not arriving in a quiet corner of the film calendar. It is stepping into a genuine Hollywood movement.

The erotic thriller genre had been largely dormant since its golden age in the 1980s and early 1990s, the era that produced classics like “Body Heat,” “Dressed to Kill,” “9 1/2 Weeks,” and the legendary “Fatal Attraction” itself. That long silence is now officially over.

By late 2025, at least nine erotic thriller film and television projects were actively in development across major studios and streaming platforms. The list reads like a genre revival wish list:

• Jenna Ortega is set to star in a modern remake of “Single White Female”
• Olivia Wilde leads the provocative thriller “I Want Your Sex,” directed by Gregg Araki
• Mandy Moore fronts “Teach Me,” an erotic thriller drama in development at Peacock with A24
• Paul Feig already has “The Housemaid’s Secret” locked in at Lionsgate for 2027

The commercial triumph of “The Housemaid” clearly unlocked something the industry had been sitting on for years. Studio executives now see the audience demand as impossible to ignore.

Viewers want adult stories with real stakes, complex characters, and that specific kind of slow-burning dread that only the best thrillers deliver. “Persona” is entering the conversation at exactly the right moment.

With a seven-figure studio bet already placed, a proven director at the wheel, and a writer who is on the hottest run of his career, “Persona” has all the ingredients to become one of the most talked-about films of its release year. The obsession, the danger, and the dark, seductive tension of a great thriller are the exact things audiences keep coming back to the cinema for, and Paul Feig has proven he knows exactly how to deliver all three. What do you think about “Persona” and its comparison to “Fatal Attraction”? Share your thoughts in the comments below.