Could “folklore” be the first Taylor Swift album to spawn a feature film? It will if one fan gets their way, and based on the celebrity response to their suggestion, it might just happen.
The fan said their goal in putting the idea out there was to manifest it into reality.
“‘The Last Great American Dynasty’ would make an incredible movie,” they wrote. “The story is timeless yet unique, the music would be exquisite, and it already has the perfect title.”
They then cast — and tagged — Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds and Jesse Tyler Ferguson in the three principle roles in the story inspired by the true story behind Swift’s newest home, once owned by socialite Rebekah West Harkness.
When Ferguson picked up on this, he shot back a response that he was totally available for the project. And it didn’t take long for Ryan Reynolds to chime in, adding, “But Bill’s heart…?”
That’s a reference to William Hale Harkness, Rebekah’s husband who was an oil heir who died in 1954 of a heart attack she was blamed for. He left her their Rhode Island home, which she lived in and made her own until her own death in 1982. Swift picked it up in 2013.
It is a compelling story, as presented in Swift’s track, which quickly became a fan and critical favorite upon the album’s surprise release on July 24, rife with the kind of details that would make a strong forward-thinking biopic.
And the fan wasn’t alone in thinking so, as Swift herself chimed into the conversation, quoting the song.
“Not trying to be ‘the loudest woman this town has ever seen,'” she wrote. “But… I LOVE THIS!”
Finally, Lively jumped into the conversation, with a deep-dive joking reference to the song, adding her two cents by saying, “I painted Ryan key lime green.” That’s a reference to the lines: “And in a feud with her neighbor / She stole his dog and dyed it key lime green.”
That’s just a hint of the wacky details that make the story memorable. And with that the fan manifested something already impressive, even if not the film itself. They got Swift and all three of their dream cast talking about it in the abstract.
Now it’s just a matter of shifting it to the concrete and bringing the story or Rebekah West Harkness to life on the silver screen.
As the fan pointed out, the soundtrack is basically already written, and you know Swift would probably be down to add some more music, and possibly star as one of Rebekah’s “Bitch Pack.”
She just won a VMA for her music video directorial debut, so maybe she’s feeling even more ambitious! Plus, she totally has access to the actual mansion Rebekah lived and played out of — seeing as she lives in it — so this film is practically halfway made already.
Based on how monumental “folklore” was upon its release, the film is guaranteed to be seen a dozen times or so by each Swiftie, making it a guaranteed moneymaker, too.
