THE DIARY OF A TEENAGE GIRL: Bel Powley cast in Kristen Wiig Film

Bel Powley cast in The Diary of a Teenage Girl. Relative newbie to the silver screen, Bel Powley will play the star in the new coming of age story co-starring Saturday Night Live alum Kristen Wiig and True Blood’s Alexander Skarsgard. First time director, Marielle Heller helms the project adapted from her own screenplay.

Based on the critically acclaimed graphic novel of the same name; The Diary of a Teenage Girl is the story of fiercely honest teenage artist, Minnie. This first person coming of age story is delivered with often painful self-examination by Minnie through text and frank drawings by author Phoebe Gloeckner that capture the particular awkwardness of a confused teenaged girl trying to make sense of an extraordinarily difficult and puzzling situation. It is a disturbing and heartfelt first-hand account as 15-year-old Minnie talks in detail about navigating teenage life in San Francisco, California in the 1970s juxtaposed against her secret love affair with her mother’s 35-year-old boyfriend, Monroe.

British actress Bel Powley will be making her American film debut in the feature playing the title character. A stage actress, Powley is best known for her breakout role in the Royal Court Theatre’s West End production of Tusk Tusk, for which she was nominated for the Evening Standard Best Newcomer Award.  She also appeared in the recent production of Jumpy, also at the Royal Court Theatre of West End. She made the leap across the pond to join the cast in Tom Stoppard’s Arcardia, which appeared on Broadway.

Director Marielle Heller adapted the screenplay from the novel and took it through a successful run of both the Sundance Institute Directors and Screenwriters Labs. Founded and established in 1981 by Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid star, Robert Redford; the Sundance Feature Film Program has supported an impressive list of award-winning and ground-breaking films through their labs, including cult favorite Napoleon Dynamite and Oscar winners The Black Swan and Precious.  The Diary of a Teenage Girl hopes to follow in its Sundance predecessors footsteps.

No word yet as to when it will be released, but check back often with Film Book for updates as they come in.

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