In a bold and unconventional move, Jennifer Lopez has revealed that she self-financed her new Prime Video original film, “This Is Me…Now: A Love Story,” which accompanies her latest album “This Is Me…Now.” The multi-talented superstar opened up about the project in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter on Monday, sharing insights into the challenges she faced during production.
According to Lopez, the decision to self-finance the film was driven by a deep commitment to her vision. “We went in over budget. It was a challenging project in that way. It’s like there could have never been enough money for the project,” Lopez told THR. “We didn’t have endless funds from a studio. This was a very independent project that I was self-financing. So it was very challenging producorially.”
The epic visual experience, directed by Dave Meyers, serves as a musical and visual interpretation of the life events that inspired her album “This Is Me…Now.” This album is a sequel to her 2002 release “This Is Me…Then,” which chronicled her initial romance with now-husband Ben Affleck. The film includes a star-studded list of cameos, featuring Affleck, Post Malone, Fat Joe, Keke Palmer, Trevor Noah, Sofia Vergara, Kim Petras, Jenifer Lewis, Jay Shetty, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and Derek Hough.
In an interview with Variety published the day after her THR interview, Lopez disclosed that the album, film, and an accompanying documentary collectively cost $20 million to produce. Once completed, Amazon purchased the project.
Reflecting on the financing hurdles, Lopez revealed, “Everybody thought I was crazy when I said I would [self-fund the film]. We did have financing, and then that fell out. They pulled out at the last minute, and then it was that moment where you go, ‘OK, do we just make a video or do we go ahead and do this thing?’”
Faced with this predicament, Lopez had a crucial conversation with Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, her co-president at Nuyorican Productions. “We talked about whether or not I do this or I just go make two videos and go the normal route. I decided that I didn’t want to do that. I wanted to see this vision through,” Lopez said.
During a recent press conference for “This Is Me…Now: A Love Story,” Lopez detailed the challenges of securing A-list cameos for the film. “It was a challenge with the cameos that we have in the movie,” Lopez noted. “We obviously had quite a few. Some came on the same day, some didn’t. We had to make it work. We did whatever we could.”
Despite the obstacles, Lopez’s dedication to her artistic vision has culminated in a project that not only showcases her musical and storytelling talents but also her unwavering commitment to bringing her creative ideas to life. “This Is Me…Now: A Love Story” stands as a testament to Lopez’s tenacity and passion, proving that sometimes, taking the independent route can lead to extraordinary results.
