Lily James to Star in and Produce Movie Inspired by Bumble Founder Whitney Wolfe Herd

As she continues to build out her development slate when it comes to acting and producing, Lily James has landed her next high-profile pic.

20th Century Studios and Ethea Entertainment, the production company formed by Jennifer Gibgot and Andrew Panay, are in pre-production for an untitled movie inspired by the story of Whitney Wolfe Herd, the founder and former CEO of online dating platform Bumble, with James on board to play the lead role. 

The pic will begin shooting in 2024, with James set to produce alongside 20th Century and Ethea.

Lily James will produce alongside producer duo Jennifer Gibgot and Andrew Panay. Rachel Lee Goldenberg is directing the film from a script written by herself, Bill Parker, and Kim Caramele. 

The project will include Gala Gordon as an Executive Producer, and Sarah Shepard will be overseeing the project for 20th Century Studios.

Wolfe Herd famously left Tinder, after co-founding the dating app, in 2014. She went on to launch competitor Bumble that same year. In 2021, the company went public and when that transition happened, she officially became one of the youngest self-made billionaires at age 31. 

She stepped down as CEO in 2023 but by then the app had now become massive successful with several divisions that are still thriving today.

Plot details are under warp as the pic is an inspiration and not based on Wolfe Herd’s life and it is unknown how the movie will compare to the actual origin story. 

The casting of other roles is already underway and the movie is set to be released in 2025.

The project marks another milestone for James as she goes from a top-tier leading lady in such hits as "Cinderella", "Baby Driver", and most recently in the critically acclaimed "The Iron Claw" to more of a multi-hyphenate as she spreads her wings on the producing front. 

This movie will mark one of her first major productions she’ll produce and it's quite the score for an actress that is just ramping up their production company.

On the acting side, she remains busy most recently starring alongside Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White in "The Iron Claw", which has since become one of A24’s bigger box-office hits to date. 

She can be seen next in "Greedy People", which had its world premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival and also has the David Mackenzie pic Relay bowing in the future.