Leah McKendrick's 'Voicemails for Isabelle' is a labor of love eight years in the making — a heartfelt tribute to her own sister that earned its place on Netflix through sheer creative passion and authenticity.
But behind the rom-com sweetness lies some serious drama: Hailee Steinfeld was originally attached before Zoey Deutch took over, McKendrick had exactly ONE take for Ciara Bravo's climactic dance sequence, and she had to wage a full campaign just to secure Taylor Swift's 'Marjorie.'
The script landed on the 2019 Hollywood Black List with six votes. Netflix acquired it after pushing to relocate from L.A./New York to San Francisco. McKendrick married two weeks after principal photography wrapped.
Eight years, one casting switch, and a desperate letter-writing campaign to Taylor Swift later — Leah McKendrick finally got her rom-com on screen. Ciara Bravo's legendary one-take dance sequence alone proves this was never just another formula film.
Leah McKendrick's 'Voicemails for Isabelle' landed on Netflix this month with all the charm of a classic romantic comedy, but according to the writer-director herself, getting this passion project to screens required navigating eight years of obstacles that would have broken most filmmakers. The film — starring Zoey Deutch as Jill, a San Francisco baker grieving her sister Isabelle — was born from deeply personal territory: McKendrick wrote it directly inspired by her own sibling relationship.
The script earned its stripes before filming even began, landing on the 2019 Hollywood Black List — a prestigious survey of unproduced screenplays voted most popular by industry executives. It received six votes. "To me, the Black List was something that happened to the big writers, like the fancy writers, the real writers," McKendrick confessed to Deadline.
"And I've always kind of viewed myself as an actor that writes, a singer that writes." But here's where things get interesting behind the scenes: Hailee Steinfeld was originally attached to play Jill before Zoey Deutch came aboard. When McKendrick was given directing reins on top of writing duties, she actively sought out Deutch — no stranger to food-focused rom-coms after her pizza-sharing scene with Glen Powell in 'Set It Up' (2018) and cornetto cravings in Prime Video's 'Something From Tiffany's' (2022).
Netflix's involvement triggered major structural changes. The story originally unfolded in Los Angeles and New York, locations McKendrick knew intimately — but the streamer rejected both cities. "I was very attached to iconic locations," she admitted, citing Fisherman's Wharf, Golden Gate Park, and Battery Spencer Observation Deck as personal must-haves.
San Francisco became the compromise, with all its logistical challenges. Perhaps the most dramatic behind-the-scenes battle involved music rights. McKendrick wrote letters directly to Taylor Swift's team requesting 'Marjorie' — a ballad about her late grandmother that she describes aligning perfectly with Jill's grief journey after her sister's death from cystic fibrosis.
"I write a lot of letters," McKendrick explained. "It's very important to me. I don't have alternatives with my music." She made the same plea to Robyn for 'Dancing On My Own,' crafting an entire deck and letter explaining that the song wasn't merely a needle drop but literally a character in her film.
The desperate campaign apparently worked because, as McKendrick noted with some wonder, "Netflix is a bunch of Swifties too, so everybody was fighting with me." The most jaw-dropping production detail? Ciara Bravo had exactly one take for the film's climactic Robyn dance sequence. "The sun was going down... we have a bunch of background dancers," McKendrick recalled.
"It was so chaotic." The actress flew in, learned the choreography, and delivered the final scene as the very last take of the day — no second chances, no safety net. "And then I was like, 'And that's a cut.' It was exactly what I needed, and Ciara was just thrown into the deep end and delivered like the legend that she is." McKendrick also appears in the film as Breeda, who delivers the crucial 'run to her' line at the film's rain-soaked climax. Fittingly, she married her husband two weeks after wrapping production — a personal milestone woven directly into her creative legacy.
