Did you love Vivienne in Inventing Anna? Well then, I suggest you meet Jessica Pressler – the real-life journalist that Vivienne Kent is loosely based off of.
*spoilers ahead*
It is no surprise that Netflix’s Inventing Anna was a hit after it launched this past month. I loved it and, after I finished the series, I found myself googling all of the real-life inspirations for each character in the show. Across social media, it was apparent a lot of people were intrigued by the real Anna Sorokin, but I wanted to find out more about the real Vivinee, the journalist behind Anna’s story breaking headlines. It turns out that journalist Jessica Pressler, who wrote How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People in May 2018, has a background of her own worth watching.
Who is Jessica Pressler?
Jessica Pressler is an American journalist that graduated from none other than Temple University. Currently an editor and writer for New York Magazine, Pressler has previously written for GQ, Elle, Smithsonian, and even for Vulture when she would write Gossip Girl episode recaps. Presser has had a very successful career but what is most riveting is the fact that several of her stories have been turned into miniseries and movies.
A Major Break
When Jessica moved to New York, the main theme of her writing was culture, wealth, and money. She specifically had an interest in female con-artists. One of her first major breaks was an article for New York Magazine, “The Hustlers at Scores” (written in December 2015). The story was about female strippers who manipulated their clients out of money illegally. Her story was so popular that she received numerous awards and sold the film rights to Will Ferrell. The film was released in 2019, starring Jennifer Lopez, Julia Stiles, and Keke Palmer.
Inventing Anna
It’s important to note that at the beginning of each episode of the Netflix miniseries, it’s stated that “this story is completely true except for all the parts that are totally made up.” It is evident that the miniseries is based on Pressler’s article, but Vivienne is still a loose adaptation of Jessica. In fact, Jessica once said, “Vivienne is like an all-caps angry email of me, but there are things that are very real mixed into it.”
Pressler’s original article did receive a lot of traffic and she did visit Anna Sorokin in prison for it. What made the article so captivating and drew attention to Netflix producers, however, was really Jessica’s ability to capture Sorokin’s inner psyche and decision making as to why she did what she did. She had many sources and her story was credible as can be.
Fact vs Fiction
Although Jessica influenced a huge part of the show, there is still a lot of fact vs fiction in play. For example, Pressler was pregnant like her character Vivienne, but it wasn’t as dramatic as depicted in the show. She actually gave birth two weeks after she finished the article; not sitting on a towel awaiting her water to break while desperately trying to finish the article. Sticking with the baby theme, Pressler’s nursery was also not covered in an Anna investigation diagram. I mean, you can kind of tell that this was a little played on when watching it. However, Jessica did comment on how she was jealous of Vivienne’s efforts!
Something surprisingly true to the story is that Jessica did indeed lend Anna her wardrobe while she was in court, but it wasn’t so emotionally provoking for her. Anna did have issues getting clothes approved and she was a bit fussy with her options so Jessica did her lawyer a favor and ran to H&M. She even threw in a dress at the end because she thought it would be funny.
Other differences include the fact that Jessica’s bosses didn’t really trouble her too much about her story and its deadlines, she didn’t help Anna’s lawyer during the case, and she did not break into Sorokin’s family home in Germany.
Overall, Jessica Pressler is a fascinating journalist and genuinely an interesting person – her rise to success is worth checking out and I’d recommend even reading an article of her’s. Who knows which one will set the stage for another award-winning feature, next?