Anne Hathaway, Dakota Johnson and Ismael Cruz Córdova brought the mystery, glamour and star power of Verity to New York City, where the cast celebrated the highly anticipated adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling psychological thriller.
At the New York premiere, HOLA! caught up with members of the cast, including Hathaway, Johnson and Puerto Rican actor Cruz Córdova, giving fans another glimpse at the personalities behind one of 2026’s most talked-about book-to-screen adaptations.
© WireImageThe premiere took place Tuesday, September 29, at AMC Lincoln Square in New York City, ahead of the movie’s October 2 theatrical release. Hathaway, Johnson, and Josh Hartnett joined Hoover and other members of the Verity team for the major red-carpet event.
Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson step into Colleen Hoover’s dark world
Verity puts Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson at the center of a psychological story built around attraction, obsession, secrets, and the increasingly uncertain line between fiction and reality.
© GettyJohnson plays Lowen Ashleigh, a struggling writer who receives an opportunity that could transform her career. She is hired to finish the books of bestselling author Verity Crawford, played by Hathaway, after Verity is left unable to complete the series herself.
Lowen relocates to the Crawford estate and begins sorting through Verity’s work. There, she discovers what appears to be a disturbing autobiographical manuscript containing troubling revelations about Verity, her husband Jeremy, and their family.
The discovery leaves Lowen questioning what is real and what may have been invented. At the same time, her relationship with Jeremy, played by Josh Hartnett, becomes increasingly complicated. The film is directed by Michael Showalter, with a screenplay by Nick Antosca. Hathaway is also a producer on the movie, while Johnson serves as an executive producer.
Ismael Cruz Córdova joins the ‘Verity’ cast as Corey
Ismael Cruz Córdova also has a place in the film’s high-profile ensemble.
The Puerto Rican actor plays Corey, joining Hathaway, Johnson, Hartnett and Brady Wagner in the adaptation.
© FilmMagicCruz Córdova’s appearance at the premiere offered HOLA! an opportunity to connect with one of the Latino talents involved in bringing Hoover’s hugely popular story to theaters.
Anne Hathaway caps off a huge year with ‘Verity’
For Hathaway, the Verity premiere arrived at the end of an unusually packed professional year.
Speaking at the New York event, the Oscar winner reflected on having five films in 2026 and credited the large team around her for helping her navigate the back-to-back projects, press appearances and red carpets.
Her Verity character, however, is far removed from the glamorous woman audiences saw arriving at the premiere.
Verity Crawford is the enigmatic bestselling novelist at the center of the story. Although Lowen initially enters Verity’s world to finish her books, the material she discovers turns a professional assignment into something far darker. That mystery is precisely what makes the relationship between Hathaway and Johnson’s characters so important.
Dakota Johnson says ‘Verity’ is about truth and trust
Johnson has also highlighted the movie’s questions about truth, trust and perception.
During the film’s promotional tour, she discussed how those themes extend beyond the thriller itself, noting the difficulty of determining what and whom to trust. Director Michael Showalter has similarly emphasized the story’s ambiguity, while the adaptation leans into some of the novel’s darker and more erotic elements.
Johnson’s Lowen serves as the audience’s entry point into that uncertainty.
The character arrives at the Crawford home as an outsider but gradually becomes entangled in the lives of Verity and Jeremy. What initially looks like a career opportunity begins to involve attraction, suspicion, and obsession, leaving Lowen to determine whether the material she has uncovered can actually be believed.
Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson’s unexpected ‘Verity’ scene
The movie also expands upon Hoover’s novel in some notable ways.
One of the moments already attracting attention involves Hathaway and Johnson sharing an intimate scene that does not appear in the original book.
© Getty ImagesHathaway revealed at the New York premiere that she had pitched the idea behind the scene. Director Michael Showalter previously described the sequence as an addition developed for the film, illustrating how the adaptation is taking some creative liberties while maintaining the psychological tension at the heart of Hoover’s story.
When does ‘Verity’ come out?
Verity opens in U.S. theaters on October 2, 2026. The Michael Showalter-directed thriller stars Anne Hathaway as Verity Crawford, Dakota Johnson as Lowen Ashleigh, Josh Hartnett as Jeremy Crawford, Ismael Cruz Córdova as Corey, and Brady Wagner as Crew Crawford.
