Sabrina Carpenter to Make Acting Comeback after 3-Year Hiatus with "Alice in Wonderland" Movie

Pop sensation Sabrina Carpenter will lead her first major studio feature with a new musical at Universal Pictures.

The project is inspired by Lewis Carroll’s trippy, picaresque novel “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” which is in the public domain. Lorene Scafaria is attached to write and direct.

Along with starring, Carpenter will produce the project, along with Marc Platt through his Universal-based Marc Platt Productions. Leslie Morgenstein and Elysa Koplovitz Dutton are also producing through Alloy Entertainment.

The untitled project comes just a week after Carpenter earned six Grammy nominations for her seventh studio album “Man’s Best Friend,” including album of the year, record of the year and song of the year.

This is not Carpenter's first venture in acting. Her on-screen credits include supporting roles in Netflix’s “Tall Girl” movies and the drama “The Hate U Give.” But she has largely focused on music in more recent years.

The musical will be Carpenter’s first feature credit since the massive commercial success and Grammy acclaim for her 2024 album “Short n’ Sweet.”

According to sources close to the deal, Carpenter first approached Universal with the project in 2024. Scafaria came on board as writer and director as the concept evolved.

Notably, Netflix had previously acquired a feature pitch for an “Alice in Wonderland” musical from Carpenter’s At Last Productions banner. That deal was announced in 2020, pre-dating Carpenter’s recent rise as one of pop music’s biggest global acts. However, the project never came to fruition.

Universal’s senior VP of production development Ryan Jones and director of production development Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project. Katie McNicol will oversee for Marc Platt Productions.