‘Logan Lucky’ Screenwriter Rebecca Blunt May Not Be a Real Person — Report

“Logan Lucky,” Steven Soderbergh’s big return to filmmaking after a four-year break, is gearing up for release next month, and the reviews so far have been unanimously positive, with particular praise being given to first-time screenwriter Rebecca Blunt. But here’s the hilarious and surprising new catch: Rebecca Blunt probably doesn’t exist. Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that Blunt is not a real person but a pseudonym for Soderbergh’s own wife Jules Asner, comedian John Henson, or even Soderbergh himself.

Soderbergh’s bluff apparently went very far, as members of the cast have claimed to have exchanged emails with the U.K.-based Blunt. The writer is said to have never appeared on set during production, another sign that something is slightly off about her existence. THR reached out to distributor Bleecker Street for confirmation, but the studio declined to comment.

Soderbergh writing the movie under a different name wouldn’t be a huge surprise. The director famously wears many hats on his productions and often goes by other names in roles other than director. He was cinematographer Peter Andrews and editor Mary Ann Bernard on “Magic Mike XXL,” for instance. The Coen Brothers do something similar, using the name Roderick Jaynes when they serve as editors on their movies.

Longtime E! network host Jules Asner has never written a screenplay before, so consider “Logan Lucky” one hell of a debut if the screenwriter turns out to be Soderbergh’s wife.

In his review of “Logan Lucky,” IndieWire senior film critic David Ehrlich wrote that Blunt’s screenplay “is as fun and frivolous as anything Soderbergh has tackled before.” So maybe it would make sense if Soderbergh ended up being the real screenwriter.

“Logan Lucky” opens in theaters August 18.