Sydney Sweeney To Star In And Produce The Caretaker Adaptation

The breakout "Euphoria" and "The White Lotus" actor Sydney Sweeney is set to star in and produce a feature film adaptation of "The Caretaker" for Universal Pictures. This is hot on the heels of the announcement of the "Barbarella" reboot also with Sweeney starring and producing. "Transformers" director Michael Bay and "The Purge" producer Brad Fuller will also produce "The Caretaker" through their Platinum Dunes label.

According to Deadline, Platinum Dunes and Universal Pictures entered into a first-look agreement in 2022, and this film will be the first result of that. Additionally, Deadline reported that Sweeney and Fuller are also teaming up to produce an adaptation of Madison Lawson's novel "The Registration" for Hulu's "Hellraiser" writers Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski. That film is being set up at Sony.

In yet another Deadline exclusive, it was reported that "The Caretaker" author Marcus Kliewer's previous story, "We Used to Live Here," sold to Netflix with Blake Lively set to star and produce. Kliewer published that novella on Reddit before it sold, and told The Daily Courier: "I probably wrote 90% of it at two Dennys restaurants." Of the sale of "The Caretaker" to Netflix, he said, "I'm still just sort of processing it. A little bit in shock, to be honest."

Hollywood's interest in "The Caretaker" came almost immediately due to the popularity and sale of the author's previous work, and Deadline reported that it was a project in high demand before it ended up at Universal. The story is about a woman who takes a caretaking job that she finds on Craigslist, before realizing that the job is more dangerous than she could have ever suspected. "Stranger Things" Season 1 showrunner, Karl Gajdusek, is scripting the adaptation.

Sydney Sweeney's plate is very full in 2023 and going forward. Besides starring in and producing "Barbarella," "The Registration," and "The Caretaker," the in-demand actress will also star in Sony's upcoming Marvel adaptation "Madame Webb" alongside Dakota Johnson and Emma Roberts. She will also be appearing in "National Anthem" with Simon Rex and Halsey.

In the summer of 2022, Sweeney dished on her financial struggles to The Hollywood Reporter which raised a lot of eyebrows upon its publication. When talking about taking projects back to back just to keep ahead financially, she said, "I still can't get my mind to shut up, and I don't sleep." She continued, "If I wanted to take a six-month break, I don't have income to cover that." Sweeney also had some sobering thoughts about the current state of the industry, saying, "They don't pay actors like they used to, and with streamers, you no longer get residuals."

With all these projects lined up, Sweeney will continue to keep busy, and fans have insight into why she likes to stay booked.