Jennifer Murphy's “The Ghost Women”

Jennifer Murphy holds an MFA in painting from the University of Denver and an MFA in creative writing from the University of Washington. She is the recipient of the 2013 Loren D. Milliman Fellowship for creative writing and was a contributor at the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference from 2008 through 2012. Her first novel, I Love You More, won the Nancy Pearl Award for fiction. Her second novel, Scarlet in Blue, was a Michigan Notable Book.

Her recently released novel, The Ghost Women, follows a series of deaths at a mysterious art academy in the woods, a deck of ancient tarot cards, and a centuries-old secret. On a hot August morning in 1972, the body of Abel Montague, a student at St. Luke’s Institute of the Arts, is found hanging from a tree in the forest. His body has been positioned into the exact pose illustrated on the Hanged Man tarot card found in his pocket. When Detective Lola Germany arrives at St. Luke’s, she believes they are dealing with a ritualistic murder. When more students are found dead, each body arranged like a tarot card, Lola realizes she is trapped in a web of power and ambition that spans centuries.

Here Murphy dreamcasts an adaptation of The Ghost Women:

I often consider directors while I’m writing a novel. For me, the director shapes a movie’s entire ambiance and tone. In contrast, I rarely dreamcast characters. I have a picture of each character in my mind before I start writing. I suppose you could say that I write a novel inside out. I know the characters, the setting and the general story itself before I create the actual plot. In this way, the characters I’ve imagined walk into a place that is fully formed and, in this story at least, feels like it has been there for centuries. So for this exercise, I specifically considered directors that could build an eerie, dark, and forested landscape, complete with rituals and magic, that includes a secret art academy located in an ancient monastery and centers on a series of student murders. And I searched for actors that fit the images of the characters I imagined in my mind.

Director

Given the current caliber of TV mini-series, I considered how The Ghost Women might be adapted into either a movie or a mini-series. If a movie, Guillermo del Toro, is the perfect fit for director. Known for his mastery of dark, atmospheric Gothic fairy tales, del Toro would excel at creating a deep, scary, emotional, and mystical world while also capturing a sense of fairy tale magic. His ability to blend beauty with decay fits the story’s ghostly ambiance. Additionally, del Toro has a personal history with tarot cards, having learned to read them from his mother as a child. He uses tarot symbolism to inform the visual design and narrative structure of his films. He also authored the forward and oversaw design of his own tarot deck called Tarot del Toro.

While I believe del Toro could also direct a fine mini-series, there are a few other directors whose artistic approaches I admire and believe could capture TGW’s world.

These include Cary Joji Fukunago (True Detective Season 1), Karyn Kusuma (Yellowjackets), and Ryan Murphy (American Horror Story: Coven)

Actors

These actors come closest to matching the look, feel, and attitude of the characters I created in my mind:

Lola Germany (Waverly Island’s lead detective, previously danced for the New York City Ballet) – Elisabeth Moss

The Weird Sisters (a group of students that engage in witchery):

Pearl Calhoun – Emma Laird

Karla Gardyn – Anya Taylor-Joy

Esme Li – Lana Candor

Hazel Donovan – Sadie Sink

Abel Montague (the first victim, but present through flashbacks) – Harris Dickenson

Colin (Lola’s sidekick) – George MacKay

Alice Landry (the art academy dean) – Ana de Armas

Monty Montague (Abel’s father and the school founder) – Cillian Murphy

Visit Jennifer Murphy's website.

Q&A with Jennifer Murphy.

--Marshal Zeringue

Lyla Lane's "The Best Little Motel in Texas"

Sonia Hartl (AKA Lyla Lane) is the author of YA, romance, and cozy mysteries. Her books have received starred reviews from BookPage and Booklist, and earned nominations for the Georgia Peach Book Award, YALSA’s Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers, Bank Street College of Education’s Best Children’s Books of the Year, ALA’s Rise: A Feminist Book Project List, and ALA’s Rainbow Booklist, and was named an Amazon Editors’ Pick for Best Young Adult. When she’s not writing she enjoys board games with her family, attempting to keep her garden alive, or looking up craft projects she’ll never get around to completing on Pinterest.

Here Hartl/Lane dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, The Best Little Motel in Texas:

Since I got the inspiration for The Best Little Motel in Texas from the Dolly Parton/Burt Reynolds movie The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, I would absolutely want Colin Higgins to direct if he were still alive. He was bold and unafraid of taking chances, and I think my book would be the right kind of bonkers to appeal to him.

Since my book is about a reserved 30-year-old librarian inheriting a brothel for senior sex workers and trying to solve a murder that happened at her place of business, I’d want to cast someone known for more prim and proper roles for my main character, Cordelia. Probably Emily Blunt because I think she plays that role so well.

For the chicks, the 60-year-old sex workers, I’d cast Dolly Parton (obviously) as Daisy for her sweet and bubbly personality. Jennifer Coolidge as Arline, the quiet one who knows the floor plans of buildings she absolutely shouldn’t have access to and who drops killer one-liners, because she would nail the comedic timing. And if she were still alive, I’d want Bea Arthur as my resident dominatrix, Belinda Sue, because who else could pull off that kind of a role better?

Visit Lyla Lane's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

Isabel Booth's "Then He Was Gone"

Isabel Booth is the pen name of Karen Jewell, a former trial attorney and now a writer. She holds an undergraduate degree in English, a Master’s in Business Administration, and a Juris Doctorate degree. When she’s not writing she loves to read, travel, and cook dinner for friends. She lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband.

Here Booth dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, Then He Was Gone:

In Then He Was Gone, six-year-old Henry English goes missing at the end of a family hike in Rocky Mountain National Park. Park ranger Hollis Monroe, a well-worn, gritty, former Montana sheriff, leads the search for Henry and teams up with a local detective to investigate the possibility that he was kidnapped. Monroe is the only character in the book for which I had an actor in mind while writing it: Robert Taylor, who played the role of Walt Longmire, sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming, in the series Longmire. He was brilliant in the show: an old-time lawman in the present day, good at his job, and wise in his ways. He would be my first choice for Monroe.

I would love to see Kate Winslet in the role of Elizabeth English, Henry’s mom. There were so many layers to her performance as small-town cop Mare Sheehan in Mare of Easttown. It would be wonderful to see what she would do with Elizabeth’s relentless focus on finding her son and the grief of losing him.

Alexis LaDay is Elizabeth’s best friend and Henry’s godmother – a hard-driving corporate lawyer, cigarette-smoking former beauty queen, going through life with a swagger and a deep love for the English family. Kelly Reilly would be perfect. She was masterful as Beth Dutton in Yellowstone.

Eddie Marsh is an odious ex-con, obsessed with Elizabeth English for her part in sending him to prison, and relishing her pain in the disappearance of her son. I would pick Gary Oldman for that role. As Jackson Lamb in Slow Horses, he looks like Eddie Marsh to me.

Paul English, Henry’s dad, is complicated. He’s a poet, a loving father, but a bit of a jerk. I’d like to see Sebastian Stan as Paul.

I leave it to the director to round out my dream cast with adorable, precocious boys to play Henry and his older brother Nick.

Visit Isabel Booth's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

Ahmad Saber's "Ramin Abbas Has MAJOR Questions"

Ahmad Saber is a young adult author who grew up on an all-girls college campus next to a massive fort in Pakistan. He now lives in Canada, and loves Broadway (favorite show = Phantom), travel (favorite place = 4-way tie between NYC, Seoul, Paris, and Melbourne), and Taylor Swift (favorite album = folklore) He's also a self-professed Chocolate Chip Cookie Connoisseur and has crowned New York's Culture Espresso’s as the best in the world.

Ramin Abbas has MAJOR Questions is his debut novel and is based in part on his own lived experience, exploring the inherent challenges of being queer and Muslim, and the struggle to reconcile faith with sexuality.

Saber is also a medical doctor specializing in rheumatology.

Here he dreamcasts an adaptation of Ramin Abbas has MAJOR Questions:

This is an incredibly fun exercise! I haven’t thought about my book as a movie before this, so I didn’t have any particular actors and actresses in mind when writing the story. Secondly, my book’s character cast is mostly male and basically all South Asian/Desi, so this exercise is a bit tougher due to the relative paucity of brown people of color in Hollywood. Add to that the challenge of casting teenagers, and you have a mammoth task ahead.

That being said, I do have a few names in mind as below.

But first, a quick synopsis of the book for context: Ramin Abbas Has MAJOR Questions tells the story of Ramin Abbas, a closeted gay senior at Hikma High, an all-Muslim school in Toronto. All he wants to do is be a devout Muslim and delay the “gay problem” until he makes it to college in New York City. But when it’s discovered that his grad portfolio is missing mandatory physical activity hours, the principal decides there’s only one solution: Ramin must join the soccer team. Except there’s a problem. Fahad, the captain of the soccer team, is way too hot and Ramin’s crush on him refuses to die. Which is just about the worst thing that could’ve happened because Ramin really does not want to enter a love triangle with Allah and a boy. Leaving Ramin with one of many major questions that may be impossible to answer: stay loyal to Allah, or take a shot at first love?

Okay, now to the dream cast!

Director: Kabir Akhtar. As the key director on Never Have I Ever, and as a person of color himself, Kabir would likely capture the heart and the humor of the story the best.

Production Studio: Without a doubt, See-Saw films (with the wisdom of Euros Lyn shared with Kabir!) I loved what they did with Season 1 of Heartstopper.

Ramin Abbas (titular protagonist): I couldn’t come up with anyone existing - I really think this one would have to be an open casting call! (And I know our Ramin would just walk in one day)

Fahad Khan (“Captain Handsome” from the soccer team): Anirudh Pisharody (“Des” in Never Have I Ever) - he captures the “dreamy Desi jock” look immaculately

Ramin’s Mom: Zarna Garg (A Nice Indian Boy) - she could bring the clueless Desi parent vibe in a humorous way

Mr. Jamal (Hikma High Principal): Raymond Ablack - I think he would capture the sarcastic side of the character very well

Layla Luscious (Muslim drag queen): The one and only, Priyanka! (Mark Suknanan)

Zayn (Ramin’s little brother): Moosa Mostafa (“Eugene” in Wednesday)

Omar Saleh (Ramin’s soccer friend): Zac Kara (Doin’ It, Grand Army)

Assim Qureshi (Le Méchant): Karan Soni (A Nice Indian Boy, Deadpool) - this one is purely out of fun because I’d love to see Karan Soni in a villainous role! I know he has the bad guy side hidden in there somewhere. Can’t be all innocence.

Visit Ahmad Saber's website.

The Page 69 Test: Ramin Abbas Has MAJOR Questions.

--Marshal Zeringue

Caitlin Rother's "Hooked"

Caitlin Rother has written or co-authored 16 books, ranging from true crime to thrillers and memoir. A New York Times-bestselling author and investigative journalist, Rother worked nearly 20 years for daily newspapers. Writing books full-time since 2006, she draws from decades of watchdog reporting on topics from addiction to suicide, mental illness, murder, government, political corruption and the criminal justice system. A popular speaker, she has appeared more than 250 times on TV, radio, and podcasts as a crime expert. After teaching writing workshops for more than 10 years, she now coaches a limited number of authors. In her spare time, she enjoys ocean swimming, and sings and plays keyboards with In the Lounge, a jazzy, bluesy trio.

Here Rother dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, Hooked:

I started writing Hooked almost 20 years ago, when I was younger, and so were the actors and actresses that could be cast to play my two lead characters--investigative reporter Katrina Chopin and surfing homicide detective Ken Goode.

The book opens with the two characters meeting at a bar in La Jolla, being immediately drawn to each other not just because they are both attractive, but because they start talking about trauma and tragedy they both share from their past. Goode gets called away to respond to a death scene before Katrina gets a chance to tell him she's a reporter, so when he sees her again the next morning after the news conference, he is disappointed to find out that she is a reporter covering his suspicious death case, because now it means they can't date. It also means that they will be competing professionally to solve the case from either side of a very bright line that separates reporters and their sources. So when I write my first drafts of this book, I would have cast Ryan Gosling as Ken Goode, because he's good at playing smart and sarcastic, and he's tall and athletic, and he was even cast as Ken in Barbie many years after I thought about him for this part in my movie. So apparently others saw him that way too. However, I think he's a bit too old now to play this character, who is 37, so the closest I could come is Glen Powell, for all the same reasons. Although he usually stars in rom-coms, and doesn't play brooding characters, perhaps he could stretch a little. If not, I'm open to suggestions. Bottom line, he's got to be smart and witty and sexy.

I would also suggest Natalie Portman to play Katrina Chopin, because she, too, is good at playing smart, tough, and sarcastic, because I think she's probably both of those in real life. Plus, she's very pretty. She's been cast as a reporter in several roles already, so again, Hollywood agrees with me. On a side note, I see myself in some of her characters, so I actually had suggested casting her to play me recently when we were discussing a dramatized limited series based on another one of my books, Death on Ocean Boulevard (which was optioned by Untitled Entertainment at the time), in which I would have possibly appeared as a character.

Visit Caitlin Rother's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

Marina Evans's "The Cheerleader"

Marina Evans is a former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader who graduated from Southern Methodist University with degrees in English Literature and Creative Writing. During her time with the Cowboys, she cheered under her maiden name/nickname, Rena Morelli. She lives in Arizona now but thinks about her days in short-shorts often. Death of a Cheerleader (UK title) and The Cheerleader (U.S. title) is her debut thriller.

Here Evans dreamcasts an adaptation of the new novel:

Every author dreams of what a “movie” cast for her book would look like, so this is so much fun! First off, The Cheerleader is a campy, splashy whodunit about fame, ambition, and a gameday murder. We meet Jentry Rae Randall in the prologue—the cheer captain of the Dallas Lonestars who is brutally killed in the locker room moments after she dances on the field. She is blonde, gorgeous, spunky, and positive, and I’m picturing Michelle Randolph of Landman fame for the part.

Then, in the book we have Royce Holt, the upcoming quarterback for the Lonestars. He’s fit, charming, and driven, so I think Austin Butler would be amazing. Then there is Nikki Keegan, an ambitious documentarian who conducts her own under-the-radar investigation of the murder. However, on the side, she is also collecting footage for an unauthorized true crime series. She’s no nonsense, natural, and smart, and I believe Riley Keough would be sensational in this role. Finally, we have our second female protagonist, Shaunette Simmons. She’s a rookie Dallas Lonestars Cheerleader who was best friends with the deceased cheer captain before their horrendous falling out. Jenna Ortega or Rachel Zegler would fit the part perfectly.

As far as a director, I would love to have Greta Gerwig of Barbie fame! She is tuned into the goal of female empowerment, and she’s also an advocate for the struggles of being front-and-center in the digital age. I can always dream!

Visit Marina Evans's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

Verlin Darrow's "The Brighter the Light, the Darker the Shadow"

Verlin Darrow is a psychotherapist who lives with his psychotherapist wife in the woods near the Monterey Bay in northern California. They diagnose each other as necessary. Darrow is a former professional volleyball player (in Italy), unsuccessful country-western singer/songwriter, import store owner, and assistant guru in a small, benign spiritual organization.

Here he dreamcasts an adaptation of his new novel, The Brighter the Light, the Darker the Shadow:

Since the protagonist of The Brighter the Light, the Darker the Shadow—Kade Tobin—is the leader of a spiritual community who may or may not have a sketchy background, casting would be challenging. On the one hand, an actor would need to have enough gravitas to make it believable that seekers would follow him and respect his teachings. On the other hand, he’d need to be able to at least hint that there was more to him than just the beneficent guy he seems to be at first. In other words, the part would call for someone who could project complexity—be a bit of a mystery in and of himself. After all, this is a story of murder, and everyone’s a suspect.

I suppose a classically trained English actor well-versed in an American accent would work. Forgetting ages, I’m thinking of people like Anthony Hopkins, Jeremy Irons, Patrick Stewart, and Peter O’Toole. Each of their voices has a commanding or self- assured element, and I respect their abilities to play diverse roles.

The detective who works with Kade—Bill Cullen—could be played by a number of people, including Walton Goggins, Colin Farrell, Vincent D’Onofrio, or Jon Tenney (he was on The Closer, and usually isn’t the main character in films. I picked him because we grew up four houses apart and he has a generic look to him.) I wouldn’t want the detective role played in a distracting, powerhouse fashion, so the actor would need to rein in his performance. Cullen is a slow and steady guy who’s easy to underestimate.

The prosecutor in the extended trail scenes could be played by Rhea Seehorn. It’s easy to settle on just one choice with this one. She portrayed just the right proportions of competence, vulnerability, and showmanship in Better Call Saul.

I’m not sure about the defense attorney. Like Detective Cullen, he’s not impressive at first, but he turns out to be an excellent trial lawyer. We only know him as a member of Kade’s flock for most of the book, complicating the casting. Who could appear to be both spiritual-minded and good at arguing? Beats me.

In The Brighter the Light, the Darker the Shadow, a lot of quirky community members are questioned as suspects. Some examples: an illegal Basque immigrant, an African-American former Buddhist nun, a fugitive hiding out as the community’s chef, and the prosecutor’s daughter. Of course, the details about these folks aren’t known at the outset. I can picture the faces of various character actors who would be right for many of these characters, but I don’t know their names or how to find out.

Visit Verlin Darrow's website.

Writers Read: Verlin Darrow (May 2023).

My Book, The Movie: Murder for Liar.

The Page 69 Test: Murder for Liar.

The Page 69 Test: The Not Quite Enlightened Sleuth.

Writers Read: Verlin Darrow (April 2024).

My Book, The Movie: The Not Quite Enlightened Sleuth.

--Marshal Zeringue

Sherry Rankin's "The Dark Below"

Sherry Rankin grew up in New Jersey where she became an early and avid reader of mystery fiction. She earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in English and currently lives in Abilene, Texas where she has taught writing and literature at a local university for twenty years.

Her novel, Strange Fire, was shortlisted for the 2017 Daniel Goldsmith First Novel Prize and won the 2017 CWA Debut Dagger Award.

Her debut thriller, The Killing Plains, was published by Thomas & Mercer as a super lead title in February 2025.

Here Rankin dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, The Dark Below:

The Dark Below is set in a small West Texas town on the northern rim of the Concho Valley—an austere landscape of scrub and cattle, scattered with abandoned Cold War infrastructure and the kinds of memories that never quite stay buried. The body of Chase Loudermilk, a student at the local community college, is discovered in a derelict, flooded missile silo on his family’s property. His death appears to be a suicide, but Teddy Drummond, his criminology professor, is unconvinced.

A former detective with a complicated home life, Teddy quit the force five years ago after a hostage negotiation ended in tragedy. Since then, she’s tried to live quietly—to be a good mother to her two children, to maintain an uneasy truce with her ex-husband, and to avoid the ethical and emotional quagmires she once navigated daily. But she also misses the excitement and sense of purpose police work once gave her.

Chase’s death doesn’t sit right with Teddy, and she allows herself to be drawn into an investigation that forces her to confront old guilt and divided loyalties—and to work alongside the woman who hates her most.

Teddy carries her own deep reservoir of personal grief, which she keeps carefully contained, throwing herself into work at the expense of her relationships. She has sharp professional instincts but feels profoundly uncertain as a mother and a friend. My dream casting for Teddy would be Emily Blunt. She has a rare ability to project intelligence and resolve without hardness, and she excels at conveying inner conflict through stillness and restraint. She could play Teddy as I imagine her—weary, capable, and quietly relentless.

Opposite her is Raina Bragg, Teddy’s former best friend turned bitter adversary. I can easily imagine her played by Kim Dickens—someone who can embody toughness, resentment, and the need to assert authority over a woman she both distrusts and feels eclipsed by, while still carrying a deep undercurrent of moral outrage and private grief.

I’d love to see Paul Dano as Pastor Mark McKissick, and Thomasin McKenzie as Teddy’s strong-willed daughter, Julia. Aaron Eckhart would be a perfect fit for Alan, Teddy’s ex-husband—a man who prides himself on being the “reasonable” parent. And Gary Oldman would do a masterful job as Teddy’s manipulative and alcoholic father, Milton.

Lorraine Toussaint would be ideal in the role of Berna Robles, the town veterinarian and Teddy’s mentor and confidante. She carries authority and restraint effortlessly, and could depict Berna as someone with a deep interior life who rarely feels the need to explain herself. Finally, I’d love to see Teddy’s love interest, Rick Castillo, played by Michael Peña, who could bring a strong, quiet decency to the role.

Visit Sherry Rankin's website.

My Book, The Movie: The Killing Plains.

The Page 69 Test: The Killing Plains.

Q&A with Sherry Rankin.

--Marshal Zeringue

Megan Chance's "The Vermilion Sea"

Megan Chance is the critically acclaimed, award-winning author of more than twenty novels, including Glamorous Notions, A Dangerous Education, A Splendid Ruin, Bone River, and An Inconvenient Wife. She and her husband live in the Pacific Northwest.

Here Chance dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, The Vermilion Sea:

The Vermilion Sea was lot of fun to write. It’s not only historical fiction, but it’s also got a bit of paranormal and some horror thrown in for good measure. Given that it all takes place on a specimen-collecting luxury cruise on the Gulf of California, and there’s nowhere for the guests or the scientists to go once things begin to go horribly wrong, it’s a locked-door story as well.

Since we’re dealing with the realms of the fantastic here, and weird creatures and big weird atmosphere energy, for a director, I’m going to pick Guillermo del Toro, though honestly it would have been fun to see what Alfred Hitchcock would have done with the tension in the book as well.

When I was writing, I had distinct actors in mind. For the main female protagonist, marine biologist Billie McKennan, I pictured British actor Emily Beecham, who starred in the Netflix series 1899 (RIP 1899. I loved you with my whole heart). For the character of James Holloway, the rich benefactor and owner of the cruise ship Eurybia, I pictured Dan Stevens. For his wife, Victorine Coustan Holloway, Blake Lively. For the maid, Maud, who is in tune with all things creepy on the ship, I cast Courtney Eaton, who plays the teen Lottie on the series Yellowjackets, and who has a pretty creepy mien of her own. And for Billie’s ex-husband, Roland Ely, I had in mind Luke Pasqualino, from the BBC’s The Musketeers, but with shorter hair. For James Holloway’s best friend, Oliver, honestly, I had no one particular in mind. Readers (and moviegoers) can fill that role however they imagine.

The Gulf of California would be a wonderful and strange place to set a movie. It would be fun to see this book become one.

Visit Megan Chance's website.

My Book, The Movie: A Splendid Ruin.

The Page 69 Test: A Splendid Ruin.

Q&A with Megan Chance.

The Page 69 Test: A Dangerous Education.

My Book, The Movie: A Dangerous Education.

Writers Read: Megan Chance (February 2023).

Writers Read: Megan Chance (January 2025).

My Book, The Movie: Glamorous Notions.

The Page 69 Test: Glamorous Notions.

--Marshal Zeringue

Laura Jensen Walker's "The Alphabet Sleuths"

Bestselling, award-winning author Laura Jensen Walker is the Agatha and Lefty-nominated author of more than 20 books including Murder Most Sweet, Hope, Faith & a Corpse, and Death of a Flying Nightingale.

A rabid Anglophile since being stationed at an RAF base with the USAF in her twenties, Walker lives in Northern California with her Renaissance-man husband and two rescue terriers, where she drinks tea and dreams of England.

Here the author dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, The Alphabet Sleuths:

“Claire Reynolds hadn’t planned to kill a man that day, but stuff happens.”

In the opening of my mystery featuring four women of a certain age, you meet main character Claire, the C-member of the self-proclaimed Alphabet Girls: Atsuko, Barbara, Claire, and Daphne. When Claire accidentally kills a man who was strangling retired cop Daphne, the gal pals must get rid of the body—a member of the local crime family—without anyone knowing. Especially the police. After Claire discovers another dead body in their California retirement community, the Alphabet Girls become the Alphabet Sleuths to track down the killer.

While writing this story about four women in a retirement community, naturally, TV’s The Golden Girls came to mind. Widowed Claire in her innocence and naïveté, reminded me of Rose, played so wonderfully by Betty White. Except Claire has a silver pixie cut ala Jamie Lee Curtis.

But Jamie Lee is such a badass I’d cast her in the role of retired cop Daphne.

Claire, I see more as a cross between Annie Potts and Mary Steenburgen.

Barbara, the tucked and plucked beautiful blonde beauty queen and retired actress (and the oldest member of the Alphabet Girls) is Jane Fonda all the way.

That leaves the A-member of the group, Atsuko Kimura. An older Michelle Yeoh would be perfect as Atsuko.

I’m a huge old movie buff, so if I was casting this movie during Hollywood’s Golden Years, these are the actresses I’d pick:

Atsuko – Anna May Wong

Barbara – Lana Turner

Claire – toss-up between Irene Dunne and Greer Garson

Daphne – Barbara Stanwyck or Joan Crawford

Visit Laura Jensen Walker's website.

--Marshal Zeringue