on february 9, 2016, it was reported that kristen stewart, james franco, and helena bonham carter were circling the film "jt leroy". justin kelly would direct the film based on savannah knoop's memoir "girl boy girl: how i became jt leroy". on march 22, 2017, it was reported that laura dern was in talks to join the film. dern would play laura albert alongside stewart as knoop. on may 16, 2017, diane kruger joined the cast. on may 23, 2017, jim sturgess joined the cast. before the film was fully financed, a skeleton crew attended the 2017 cannes film festival to obtain some necessary footage. as of august 1, 2017, the film had begun principal photography in winnipeg, manitoba, canada. kelvin harrison jr., courtney love, and james jagger also joined the cast. as of august 18, 2017, "jt leroy" had wrapped filming.