Phoebe Waller-Bridge Reflects on Leaving Donald Glover’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith

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Phoebe Waller-Bridge Reflects on Leaving Donald Glover’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith

Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Donald Glover were set to produce a Mr. & Mrs. Smith television series for Amazon. However, Waller-Bridge left the project — something she acknowledges as a creative marriage not working out.

Speaking to Vanity Fair, Waller-Bridge was asked about the project. She acknowledged she worked on it for about “six months fully in heart and mind.” The actress and writer went on to note that she believes the show will be “brilliant,” but that sometimes you have to know when to leave a project, and not “get in the way of a vision.”

“I worked on that show for six months fully in heart and mind and really cared about it—still care about it,” Waller-Bridge said. “And I know it’s gonna be brilliant. But sometimes it’s about knowing when to leave the party. You don’t want to get in the way of a vision.”

She went on to say that creative collaboration is like a marriage, and that sometimes, “some marriages don’t work out.”

At the time of Waller-Bridge’s departure from the series in September 2021, the decision was noted as amicable, with no bad blood between her or Glover. As for the actress, she’ll next star in the upcoming Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, as well as 2024’s fantasy comedy film IF.

What is Mr. & Mrs. Smith about?

Mr. & Mrs. Smith is a reboot of Doug Liman’s 2005 action-comedy of the same name. It is co-created and executive produced by Glover and Francesca Sloane, who are both serving as showrunners. The project will be part of Glover’s overall deal with Amazon Studios.

Executive producers are New Regency’s Yariv Milchan and Michael Schaefer and Wells Street Films’ Jenny Robins. It is scheduled to make its debut on Prime Video.

The original film was penned by Simon Kinberg. It centered on an upper-class married couple who both moonlight as assassins at competing agencies who have been assigned to kill each other. It was led by Oscar winners Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt.