Jessica Pressler Article: Jessica Pressler made Anna Delvey famous, but she’s undecided about whether or not she likes her. The journalist who broke the news of Anna Delvey’s crimes tells us what it felt like to be a part of “Inventing Anna” after spending so much time with her. ‘What is Mongolia like at this time of year?’
“When asked how she feels about watching herself on television, Jessica Pressler responds Pressler has already featured on the big screen twice as a staff writer for a New York magazine and has also written for GQ, Elle, and Esquire. Julia Stiles played Elizabeth, an investigative journalist who was largely modeled after Pressler, in Hustlers, a 2019 Jennifer Lopez and Constance Wu film based on Pressler’s New York magazine story “The Hustlers at Scores.” “Inventing Anna,” a Shondaland and Netflix limited series based on a Pressler story, “How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People,” stars Anna Chlumsky as Vivian Kent, a journalist looking for the next big scoop to break her professional rut.
Almost soon after the story was published in 2018, the calls began to stream in. Finally, Pressler chose Shonda Rhimes to take her hard-won inquiry into television and create a fictional version of herself, which we’ll go into in further detail below.
“The weirdest thing is how completely genuine things come up against things that are entirely not real,” Pressler says through Zoom from her New York City home. It’s strange to hear what you say in one context come out of someone else’s mouth in another. Right now, it’s all so strange to me. Despite this, I had already gone through it once. Because this is what I want my subjects to get out of their time with me, the experience was precious to me.
Inventing Anna Writers’ Room Premiered
The relationship between the two projects is something Pressler is aware of. She contacted Steven Hirsch, a court photographer, during her study of the “Hustlers” piece, and he assisted her in finding Delvey. The trial of Anna Delvey — or Anna Sorokin, to be more accurate — began in 2019, and the Inventing Anna writers’ room premiered alongside the filming of Hustlers.
Pressler, a native of Massachusetts, has a bachelor’s degree in English from Temple University in Philadelphia and has spent more than a decade as a staff writer at New York magazine. She’s currently working on a book on the Anna Delvey story, which she intends to publish soon, because of the quantity of material accessible in a con artist’s life. “Is she terrible or is society awful?” says the narrator. Pressler makes several claims. I’m at a loss. I’m at a loss. She was able to become this because this is how the world works. Furthermore, it fascinates me.”
I was fortunate to chat with Pressler about her experience working on Inventing Anna and her opinions on Anna Delvey, despite her aversion to interviews and preference to be the one asking the questions. Thank you kindly. It’s critical to know who approached you and when they did so. What was the first step in the process of turning your article into a television show? It was ludicrous, to say the least. To be honest, it’s difficult to bring it up. It was unlike anything I’d ever experienced before, and it’s doubtful I’ll ever experience anything like it again.
I was nine months pregnant and felt like I was going to burst. I received a rush of phone calls from celebs I’d admired for years after finishing the story, all within a few weeks of giving birth to my first kid. While that may appear to be a dream come true, saying no to all but one of those people was a nightmare. I consider the fact that I was allowed to participate in those phone discussions to be a blessing in and of itself, as I believe many locales no longer allow writers [of the original work] to do so. Shonda Rhimes, of course, had you on board.
What was your impression of the experience?
It’s unclear why you selected Shondaland and her. There had been so much turmoil and excitement in earlier phone talks, but when I spoke with Shonda, it was the calmest phone call I had ever had. There was soothing music playing while I was in wait. When Olivia locked her gaze on Fitz, the Motown began to play, and love blossomed, just as it had in Scandal. It gave me a fantastic sense of relaxation. Because no one was angry when I told them who I was going with because of Shonda’s yes, it was simple for me to say no to everyone else. It’s due to SHONDA.
What does that entail for you as a producer on the show? So, what’s up with that?
To be honest with you, JP, it wasn’t even my idea: Maybe it was a chat I had with my agency. It didn’t hold much weight with me. I had no prior knowledge of Hustlers other than communicating with [writer-director] Lorene Scafaria and exchanging emails. Even if you’re not a part of the creative process, I believe it’s important for a writer to feel a part of anything that is based on their work. Furthermore, while I was not directly involved in the day-to-day creation of Inventing Anna, there was always an open door for me to walk through.
A lot of similarities between how you researched the issue and how you presented it on screen.
JP: My house didn’t have a murder wall. Not in the nursery, for example. To be honest, I’m envious of Vivian. I also did not skip an ultrasound appointment. The timelines change, as does the manner in which the story develops. Parts of it are based on true events, but others are entirely made up. As a consequence, the show’s characters say things that real-life people have said to me in many of the interviews, but the circumstances and context are different in the show. When I did most of my interviews for the show, I had already finished the magazine story, but Vivian is still covering it. Since the publication of the magazine Storey, I’ve had a number of interviews about my book.
Is Jessica Pressler in a relationship with Someone?
Many individuals have expressed concern about Jessica Pressler’s spouse, who is an American journalist. Aside from her work life, she has never shied away from the opportunity to be the center of attention in her personal life.
VV: Were you hesitant to adopt Anna’s story into a television series?
JP: To begin with, there was no other option. It had to happen eventually, and now it had. I had to examine not just who would make the best show or film, but also who would treat the actual individuals involved with respect before making this decision. Who is going to listen to them? That was significant.
Shondaland Senior Contributor Valentina Valentini is a London-based entertainment, travel, and gastronomy journalist. She has written for the Washington Post, Vanity Fair, Vulture, Variety, Thrillist, and Heated, to name a few. Valentina V’s personal essays have been published in the Los Angeles Times and Longreads, and she tweets as @ByValentinaV.
