Courteney Cox’s return to feature directing began in an unlikely but very Hollywood way: with a chance encounter at the Beverly Hills Hotel.
Cox said she first learned that Evil Genius was available to direct after running into Barbara Schroeder, who directed the Netflix documentary of the same name, while seated at her preferred spot at the hotel. The project marks Cox’s first feature film as a director in 12 years.
“I was at the Beverly Hills Hotel sitting at the counter; my favorite spot in the corner. I saw [Schroeder], and I was like, ‘Oh my God, I love Evil Genius. You did such a great job,’” Cox said at The Hollywood Reporter’s Studio at 1 Hotel during TIFF, presented by sponsor Canada Goose. “She said, ‘It’s available to direct.’ She goes, ‘You should run with it.’ We had a good relationship before. … I made a lot of deals there [at the Beverly Hills Hotel], and made a lot of money there. It’s just interesting.”
Cox added a wry note about the location of those deals, saying they were always “at the counter” because, as she joked, “I can’t get inside the poker room.”
That Beverly Hills Hotel conversation may have opened the door, but Cox said the movie took a long time to become a reality. According to Cox, Evil Genius spent “eight years” in development, a stretch that included the COVID-19 lockdown and the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes before production finally began in 2025.
Even with those delays, Cox said she stayed attached to the material because she “couldn’t let [the story] go because I loved it.”
A true-crime story with a major cast
Evil Genius stars Patricia Arquette, David Harbour, Michael Chernus, Garret Dillahunt and Danielle Macdonald. The film follows the true-crime story of the 2003 “pizza bomber” case, which resulted in the death of Brian Wells.
Cox said the casting helped her bring a deeper layer to a case already known through headlines. Speaking about Arquette and Harbour, who also visited THR’s studio on Friday, Cox said, “We got these two amazing actors.”
She continued, “I knew there was a story beneath the headlines that was really emotional and touching and terrifying and all of the things, and I’ve got the best actors to play the parts.”
The project also includes small roles for the daughters of two of its central creative figures. Cox was joined by her daughter, Coco, while Arquette’s daughter, Harlow, also appears in the film.
“Coco, she’s got a little scene in the movie, and Harlow, Patricia’s daughter, is young Marge,” Cox said. “Coco’s really sweet, too. … Coco loves acting so much that she was so happy to be there. It’s amazing.”
Arquette added that Coco has been preparing for performance from an early age. “She’s been studying since she was so little, and doing shows and plays,” Arquette said. “She’s the only one… well, her and David, who did a lot of musical theater, and all of this. She just finished her first other movie. So, it’s very exciting. They’re fifth-generation actresses, our little daughters.”
What happens next?
Evil Genius premieres at TIFF on Saturday, Sept. 12, bringing Cox’s years-in-the-making feature directing project to the festival after a path that began, fittingly, with a conversation at the Beverly Hills Hotel counter.