Inventing Anna First Look: The Viral Heiress Conwoman Gets Dramatized In A Netflix Series
Shonda Rhimes continues to rule Netflix with glamour — but instead of more regency romance, she's delving into the 21st century New York social scene. Her upcoming series "Inventing Anna," is inspired by the story of Anna Delvey, the German fraudster who pretended to be a socialite. Julia Garner ("Ozark," "The Assistant") is taking on the role of the fake heiress, and Netflix just provided our first look at her new persona.
Two sides of the Anna Delvey story will dominate the show, and the photos put both on display: the glamorous lifestyle that led to her downfall and her time in prison, awaiting trial. The series is inspired by the Jessica Pressler New York Magazine article, "How Anna Delvey Tricked New York's Party People," which recapped her saga of crime. The woman behind the fake heiress was Anna Sorokin, who spent months making friends in the New York social scene, stealing their hearts to get at their money. She conned the wealthy elites out of thousands, in an effort to launch lavish art club with various locations across the country.
First Look at Inventing Anna
"Inventing Anna" dramatizes her story through the lens of a young journalist, Vivian, investigating the Insta-famous conwoman as she awaits trial. Vivan serves as a stand-in for the author of the original article, Presssler. This isn't the first time Pressler's been dramatized in an adaptation of an article — she was also the basis for the journalist framing the story of Jennifer Lopez's 2019 movie, "Hustlers." The Pressler Cinematic Universe strikes again!
Vivan is played by Anna Chlumsky, best known for her child actress days as the lead of "My Girl," Vada Sultenfuss. Chlumsky more recently played Amy Brookheimer in "Veep," and received six Emmy nominations for the role. The star-studded cast also includes Rhimes alum Katie Lowes ("Scandal") as Rachel, a follower of Delvey's; Laverne Cox ("Orange is the New Black") as Kacy Duke, a celebrity fitness trainer hired by Sorokin; Alexis Floyd ("The Bold Type") as hotel employee Neff; Arian Moayed ("Succession") as Todd, Sorokin's defense lawyer; Anna Deavere Smith ("Nurse Jackie," "For The People") as aging magazine employee Maud; Anders Holm ("Workaholics") as Vivian's husband, Jack; Jeff Perry ("Scandal") as Lou, magazine employee; Terry Kinney ("Billions") as war correspondent, Barry; and Jennifer Esposito ("Crash," "The Boys") as Talia Mallay, owner of a lavish lifestyle brand.
Here's how Netflix has described the series:
In "Inventing Anna," a journalist with a lot to prove investigates the case of Anna Delvey, the Instagram-legendary German heiress who stole the hearts of New York's social scene – and stole their money as well. But is Anna New York's biggest con woman, or is she simply the new portrait of the American dream? Anna and the reporter form a dark, funny, love-hate bond as Anna awaits trial and our reporter fights the clock to answer the biggest question in NYC: who is Anna Delvey? The series is inspired by the New York Magazine article "How Anna Delvey Tricked New York's Party People" by Jessica Pressler, who also serves as a producer.