Hugh Hefner’s widow, Crystal Harris, has publicly urged Jessica Biel to reconsider playing the Playboy founder’s fictional wife in the forthcoming film Playmates.
Harris, who was married to Hefner from 2012 until his death in 2017, contacted Biel through Instagram after reports emerged about her casting.
She later shared a screenshot of the private message publicly, warning against presenting Hefner and the Playboy Mansion through a nostalgic or romanticised lens.
“Please reconsider playing Hugh Hefner’s ‘wife’ if this film intends to romanticize him or the Playboy world,” Harris wrote.
“I was actually his wife, and I experienced sexual, emotional, financial and physical abuse in that relationship.”
Hefner died in 2017 at the age of 91 and was never able to respond to the allegations Harris subsequently detailed publicly.
Harris highlights allegations from other women
Harris, 40, said her concerns extended beyond her own experience with Hefner.
She referred to allegations made by other women associated with Playboy, including claims involving rape, coercion, drugging and exploitation.
“I hope everyone involved in this film takes the time to listen to the women who lived it,” Harris added, “before helping Hollywood turn it back into nostalgia.”
Jessica Biel has not publicly responded to the message. Representatives for the actress have reportedly been contacted for comment.
Biel will play a fictional character
Reports about Biel’s role have prompted some confusion over whether she is portraying Harris.
Her character is reportedly fictional and described as a former Playmate who becomes Hefner’s wife. The film is not understood to be a direct retelling of Harris’s marriage.
Bill Pullman has been cast as Hefner, while Lily-Rose Depp will play Anna, one of several women hoping to become Playmate of the Month.
The cast also includes young actress Indiana Elle.
Playmates will be written and directed by Lorraine Nicholson, the daughter of actor Jack Nicholson. The filmmaker has said the project was partly inspired by her childhood experiences of visiting the Playboy Mansion.
Film centres on unlikely friendship
The story reportedly follows a confident 13-year-old girl who regards the Playboy Mansion as her second home.
She meets Anna, an aspiring Playmate, and the pair form an unlikely friendship while helping one another pursue their separate ambitions.
Although Hefner and the Playboy environment feature in the story, the film contains fictional characters and is not being presented as a conventional biographical drama.
Harris has spoken openly about marriage
Harris has previously described her marriage to Hefner as controlling, restrictive and emotionally abusive.
In her 2024 memoir, Only Say Good Things: Surviving Playboy and Finding Myself, she wrote about the loss of identity she experienced while living at the mansion.
She has said that although she cared for Hefner, she was never genuinely in love with him and struggled with a relationship structured around his desires.
“When I was at the mansion, I didn’t know who I was,” she told E! News in 2024.
Harris has since remarried, marrying businessman James Ward in April 2026.
It remains unclear whether her public appeal will affect Biel’s involvement or influence how the filmmakers depict Hefner and the Playboy world.
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