EXCLUSIVE: Emma Roberts (We’re the Millers) has signed on to star in rom-com A Murder Uncorked with Ari Sandel (When We First Met) directing and Vincent Newman (We’re the Millers) producing from a script by Legally Blonde and The Ugly Truth screenwriter Karen McCullah.
Roberts will play a struggling actress who loses her TV detective role and has to get her old waitressing gig back. It’s there where she meets the handsome Derek, owner of a prestigious winery, who offers her a dream job in beautiful Napa Valley. But when a murder rocks the vineyard, she must crack the case, protect the man she’s falling for, and outwit Napa’s hilariously high-maintenance elite before her dream job and budding romance go up in smoke.
Pic was written by McCullah, who upcoming also has The Last Resort with Daisy Ridley and Alden Ehrenreich, based on the seven-book murder mystery romance series by author Michele Scott.
Production on A Murder Uncorked is due to start in 2026. Newman is producing with Contentious Media financing. Luminosity Pictures is handling international sales and introducing the project ahead of the TIFF market.
“Michele’s books are a hugely entertaining blend of romance, comedy and mystery that are appealing to a worldwide audience of all ages. A Murder Uncorked is the first film in what we envision as a franchise,” said Newman.
“I couldn’t be more thrilled about the opportunity to work with Emma and to create this love letter to both Napa Valley wine country and the murder mystery genre while doing it with a comedic flair that makes this a fun and entertaining ride,” added Sandel.
We’re the Millers, Holidate and American Horror Story star Roberts was recently an exec producer on Hulu series Tell Me Lies.
Sandel directed and co-wrote the short film West Bank Story, which won an Academy Award in 2007. He went on to direct films including Vince Vaughn’s Wild West Comedy Show, which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, and the high school comedy The D.U.F.F. for CBS Films, which was nominated for a People’s Choice Award and five Teen Choice Awards. He also directed the Netflix romantic comedy When We First Met, starring Adam Devine and Alexandria Daddario, and Goosebumps 2 for Sony Pictures.
Roberts is represented by CAA & Sweeney Entertainment. Sandel is represented by WME and Artists First.