Few Colleen Hoover books linger as deeply as Verity. Not because it's a happy story — far from it — but because it precisely treads the line between what you want to believe and what you already know. And with a movie coming out featuring a cast that will make the BookTok community explode, there's no better time to pick up the book than now.
Amazon MGM Studios' Verity movie will be released in theaters on October 2, 2026. Anne Hathaway plays Verity Crawford. Dakota Johnson plays Lowen Ashleigh. Josh Hartnett plays Jeremy. And if you've read the book, you know exactly how explosive that combination is.
📚 Read the book before October 2nd
Discover your next psychological thriller with a Blind Date Book (Thriller) — a surprise book in the thriller genre
→ Order a Blind Date Book (Thriller) now
What is Verity about?
Verity follows writer Lowen Ashleigh, who is hired as a ghostwriter for famous author Verity Crawford after a mysterious accident incapacitates Verity. As Lowen works on the project, she discovers a disturbing unfinished manuscript that raises questions about Verity's mental state and her relationship with her husband Jeremy.
What starts as a professional assignment quickly becomes a psychological game. Lowen grapples with where fiction ends and reality begins, while also seeing the lines between professional and personal blur further with Verity's husband Jeremy.
The book has been on almost every "most shocking ending book" list on BookTok for years — and rightly so. Verity is the kind of story that keeps you awake at night, not from fear, but from the question: what is truly real here?
The cast that's making BookTok explode
Verity is the fourth Colleen Hoover adaptation after It Ends With Us (2024), Regretting You (2025), and Reminders of Him (March 2026). But none of the previous adaptations have a cast that seems to fit the material as well as this one.
Anne Hathaway as Verity Crawford
Hathaway has built her career on roles that hide more than they show. She is both alluring and terrifying in the trailer — precisely the balance that Verity Crawford has on paper.
Dakota Johnson as Lowen Ashleigh
Johnson shared in an interview that her character is actually the "villain" of the story. "That's so much fun," she said about it. Lowen is the perspective through which you experience the story, but also the one whose reliability you increasingly question.
Josh Hartnett as Jeremy Crawford
The man between two women in a story where no one is completely honest. Hartnett is the perfect choice for a character you simultaneously want to trust and distrust.
Why the film is deliberately released on October 2nd
Amazon MGM Studios strategically moved the film from May to October. Previously successful female-centric thrillers such as Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train achieved huge results with an opening weekend in October. Spooky season, dark stories, a chilling thriller — the timing is perfect.
Read the book before October 2nd — here's why
With every good book-to-movie moment, the same applies: read the book first. Not because the movie is worse, but because the reading experience gives you something the movie never can: the chance to doubt, theorize, and come to your own conclusion before the movie fills it in for you.
With Verity, this is even more important than with other books, because the story revolves around interpretation. Two readers reading the same book can come to a completely different conclusion. And that conversation, that debate between "I believe it" and "I don't believe it," is precisely what has kept Verity alive on BookTok for years.
📖 Complete your Verity reading moment
Save your most shocking pages with a thriller bookmark and capture all your thoughts in our Book Review Notebook — especially for readers who want to remember every book.→ View our thriller bookmarks
→ Order the Book Review Notebook
Other Colleen Hoover adaptations you might have missed
Verity is not the first CoHo adaptation, and certainly not the last. Here's the overview:
- It Ends With Us (2024) — starring Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni, and Brandon Sklenar. The film was a surprising summer hit, grossing over $346 million worldwide.
- Regretting You (2025) — the second major CoHo adaptation
- Reminders of Him (March 2026) — already released in cinemas
- Verity (October 2, 2026) — the most anticipated of them all
Plan your Verity reading marathon
You still have plenty of time to read the book before October 2nd. Here's a realistic plan:
Now: Order the book and prepare your reading nook
Week 1-2: Read Verity — it's a quick read, most readers finish it in a weekend
Before October 2nd: Write your book review while everything is still fresh
October 2nd: Go to the cinema and compare
🎁 The complete Verity reading set
Everything you need for the ultimate Verity reading experience:✔ Blind Date Book (Thriller) — if you want more dark thrillers afterwards
✔ Book Review Notebook — capture all your theories
✔ Reading Log Book Tracker — keep track of your CoHo reading list
✔ Glass Can — for the drink you need during the most shocking scenes
→ View all products
Frequently Asked Questions about the Verity film
When is the Verity movie coming out?
Verity will be released in theaters on Friday, October 2, 2026.
Who plays Verity Crawford in the movie?
Anne Hathaway plays Verity Crawford, Dakota Johnson plays Lowen Ashleigh, and Josh Hartnett plays Jeremy Crawford.
Who directed the Verity movie?
Michael Showalter directs the film, with a screenplay by Nick Antosca.
Where can I see the Verity movie?
The film will be released in theaters via Amazon MGM Studios starting October 2, 2026.
Should I read the book before the movie?
Yes — and especially for Verity. The book contains multiple interpretations of the same story that the movie necessarily has to shorten. Read the book first for the full, most shocking version of the story.
Is Verity a thrilling book?
Verity is a psychological thriller with dark themes. The book contains content warnings regarding violence, child loss, and manipulation. Check the trigger warnings if you are sensitive to heavy themes.
Where can I buy bookish accessories for my Verity reading moment?
At DopaminePrintsVibe you will find bookmarks, a Book Review Notebook, and more.
Ready for Verity?
Whether you're a seasoned CoHo fan or picking up a Colleen Hoover book for the first time: Verity is the kind of story that makes you sit down for a moment. Not because it's bad, but because it's too good.
Read it before October 2nd, write down your thoughts in our Book Review Notebook, and then go to the cinema to see what Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson make of it.
Happy reading — and keep your tissues handy. 📚🖤
🖤 Order now and receive before October 2nd
Blind Date Book (Thriller) • Book Review Notebook • Reading Log • Glass Can
→ View the full shop