Crystal Hefner, the widow of the late Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, has issued an explicit public appeal to actress Jessica Biel, asking her to reconsider her involvement in director Lorraine Nicholson’s upcoming feature film Playmates.
The casting announcement, confirmed earlier this week, revealed that Biel has joined the project to portray one of Hefner’s wives in a coming-of-age drama based on Nicholson’s childhood memories growing up around the Playboy Mansion estate. The late publisher was married three times throughout his life: to Millie Williams from 1949 to 1959, Kimberley Conrad from 1989 to 2010, and Crystal Hefner from 2012 until his passing in 2017.
Taking to Instagram, Crystal published a direct message she sent to Biel, posting the text as a grid graphic while tagging the actress to ensure maximum visibility. In the letter, Crystal urged the Hollywood star to examine the broader history of physical and psychological abuse allegations associated with the estate before lending her name to the project.
“Please reconsider playing Hugh Hefner’s “wife” if this film intends to romanticize him or the Playboy world. I was actually his wife, and I experienced sexual, emotional, financial and physical abuse in that relationship. Many other women have come forward with allegations of rape, coercion, drugging and exploitation as well. There are also deeply troubling concerns involving minors. I hope everyone involved in this film takes the time to listen to the women who lived it before helping Hollywood turn it back into nostalgia,” Crystal wrote.
According to trade reports, Playmates features veteran actor Bill Pullman as Hugh Hefner, leading a cast that includes Lily-Rose Depp and newcomer Indiana Elle.
Production coverage describes the feature as an L.A.-set period piece centered on 13-year-old Elle (Indiana Elle), who views the Mansion as her home away from home. During her visits, she develops a friendship with Anna (Depp), a young woman vying to become Playmate of the Month, as both navigate personal ambitions inside the estate’s complex ecosystem.
Neither Biel nor representatives for the film’s production team have publicly addressed Crystal Hefner’s statement.
