Netflix Is Turning a Thanksgiving Text Into a Movie
Film/TV

Netflix Is Turning a Thanksgiving Text Into a Movie

One of the more wholesome viral memes that ends up rearing its head year at the end of November, an Arizona grandmother who accidentally texted a complete stranger to Thanksgiving has since turned the holiday invite into a six year tradition. Now, the meet-cute is getting its own Netflix movie.

Perhaps taking a page out of A24's book with Zola, the streaming giant is set to adapt the social media story into its own feature film. The Thanksgiving Text will recount the tale of how an accidental Thanksgiving meal invitation sent via text from Wanda Dench — intended for her grandson — was instead received by high school senior, Jamal Hinton, who decided to join the family meal.

Hinton has since joined the Denchs for dinner every year following, a tradition that started in 2016. Last year's reunion was especially poignant given that Dench's husband, Lonnie, passed away in April due to complications from COVID-19.

In a joint statement, Dench and Hinton said about their viral tradition getting made into a movie, “We are excited to share our story with the world. We hope it inspires more people to reach out and make connections that they wouldn’t ordinarily make. We are so blessed to find a genuine friendship brought together by God from a mistaken text message.”

Photo Courtesy of Netflix