Kim Novak has publicly objected to Sydney Sweeney portraying her in Scandalous!, a planned drama about Novak’s relationship with Sammy Davis Jr. Novak said Sweeney was “totally wrong to play me” and worried the casting could make the relationship seem primarily sexual. The project’s status was unresolved in March 2026 reporting; there was no confirmed cancellation or production start.
What did Kim Novak say about Sydney Sweeney playing her?
In a new interview with The Times, as quoted in reports published March 28–30, 2026, Novak said she would never have approved the casting and declared, “She was totally wrong to play me.” The accessible reports reproduce excerpts rather than the full interview.
Novak’s objection was also about how the story might be framed. She said, “There’s no way it wouldn’t be a sexual relationship because Sydney Sweeney looks sexy all the time.” Her concern was that the film could emphasize sexuality and miss the personal bond she said she and Davis shared. These are Novak’s views about the casting and anticipated portrayal, not a description of a completed film.
What is Scandalous! about?
Scandalous! is a planned drama about Novak and Davis’s relationship. Reports have named Sweeney as Novak, David Jonsson as Davis and Colman Domingo as director; Miramax was reported to be developing the project. Those attachments do not establish that the film entered production.
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Domingo described the intended story to Deadline in 2024 as one about love and privacy: “Hopefully we’ll make a beautiful, sweet film that’s really about the possibility of love, but under many eyes, trying to have privacy, trying to have love, trying to have a life.” That stated creative aim contrasts with Novak’s worry that the casting would invite a chiefly sexual interpretation.
Why did Novak object to the title and framing?
Novak had already challenged the word Scandalous! in an earlier interview with The Guardian, saying, “I don’t think the relationship was scandalous.” She described Davis as someone she cared about and said they shared “that need to be accepted for who we are and what we do, rather than how we look.”
That perspective places the relationship in a context broader than celebrity romance. Novak and Davis met in 1956. According to The Guardian’s account, their relationship became public in 1958 amid racist pressure and studio concerns. The paper reports that Novak denied the relationship publicly and that Columbia chief Harry Cohn threatened Davis; Davis later married Loray White. This history is reported context, not evidence that the planned film has settled how it will portray those events.
What has Sydney Sweeney said about the role?
Sweeney previously said she was honored to play Novak and wanted to meet her. In comments reported by People in October 2025, Sweeney connected Novak’s story to Hollywood scrutiny and control over a public image: “I think her story is still very relevant today in that she dealt with Hollywood and scrutiny with her relationships and her own private life and the control of her image.” March 2026 reports said Sweeney had not responded to Novak’s latest criticism by the time they were published.
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Is the Kim Novak biopic still happening?
Its status was not established in the cited March 2026 coverage. The Guardian described development as reportedly stalled, while Vanity Fair said the current status was unknown. In December 2025, Sweeney had told The Hollywood Reporter the team was putting the project together and raising financing, describing it as a labor of love.
The reports do not confirm a release date, a production start, completed financing or cancellation. Novak’s public disapproval is not evidence that she held contractual approval rights or that the producers changed the casting.
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How the project reached this point
- 1956: Novak and Davis first met, according to the reporting.
- 1958: Their relationship became public amid racist pressure and studio concerns, in The Guardian’s account.
- October 2024: ABC News reported that Deadline first covered the project, with Miramax developing it and Domingo attached to direct.
- October 2025: Sweeney said she was honored by the role and wanted to meet Novak.
- December 2025: Sweeney said the team was assembling the film and raising financing.
- March 28–30, 2026: Coverage attributed Novak’s rejection of the casting and her concern about sexual framing to her interview with The Times.
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