Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson's first teaser for Colleen Hoover's "Verity" arrived this week, showing the film's central characters in a tense and unsettling exchange that includes a shocking kiss. The movie, directed by Michael Showalter, is set to open in theaters on Oct. 2, 2026.

The teaser continues the rollout for Amazon MGM Studios' adaptation of Hoover's bestselling 2018 thriller, which first drew attention with footage shown earlier at CinemaCon.

Hathaway plays Verity Crawford, a celebrated author who is unable to finish her work after a serious accident, while Johnson plays Lowen Ashleigh, the writer hired to complete Verity's book series, according to Variety.

According to the trailer description, Lowen travels to the Crawford estate to ghostwrite for Verity and soon finds autobiographical notes that suggest darker truths about Verity's marriage and family life. The story follows Lowen as she struggles to separate fiction from reality while becoming increasingly drawn into the household's secrets.

Teaser Trailer for 'Verity'

The teaser's most discussed moment shows Lowen kissing Jeremy Crawford, played by Josh Hartnett, before realizing she has blood on her mouth and is actually kissing Verity. ExtraTV described the scene as a "bloody kiss," and the teaser's dialogue warns that "There is no light where we're going. Darkness ahead."

Dakota Johnson's previous film work includes a mix of major studio projects and smaller dramas, led by the "Fifty Shades" series, which made her a widely known star, Britannica reported.

She also appeared in films such as "The Social Network," "Beastly," "21 Jump Street," "The Five-Year Engagement," "Black Mass," "A Bigger Splash," "How to Be Single," "Suspiria," "Bad Times at the El Royale," "The Peanut Butter Falcon," "The Lost Daughter," "Cha Cha Real Smooth," "Madame Web," "Materialists," and "Splitsville."

"Verity" is based on Hoover's novel of the same name and marks a shift from the author's better-known romance projects to darker suspense material. The cast also includes Hartnett as Jeremy Crawford, Verity's husband, as per Deadline.

Hoover's recent film adaptations have included "It Ends With Us," "Regretting You," and "The Layover." Anne Hathaway's 2026 slate also includes "Mother Mary" on April 17, "The Devil Wears Prada 2" on May 1, and "Flowervale Street" on Aug. 14.

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Anne Hathaway, Dakota johnson, Teaser Trailer