Netflix is making a film about the grandma who went viral for inviting a stranger to her Thanksgiving dinner

The Thanksgiving Text will tell the story of Wanda Dench and Jamal Hinton's unexpected holiday tradition

By Gabrielle Sanchez  |  December 3, 2021 | 3:44pm
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Netflix is making a film about the grandma who went viral for inviting a stranger to her Thanksgiving dinner
Jamal Hinton, Wanda Dench Photo: Jamal Hinton/Twitter

So, it looks like the folks over at Netflix saw A24 make an entire film based on a Twitter thread and decided they should give it a shot. Rather than a twisting and turning tale about the friendship between two strippers, Netflix is focusing on a heartwarming tale about an unexpected friendship between a young high-schooler and a grandma with the wrong number.

Per an exclusive at Variety , The Thanksgiving Text will recount the true tale that began in 2016 when Wanda Dench thought she was texting her grandson to check if he would be coming over for the holiday.

On November 15, 2016, Dench texted Hinton with an invitation to Thanksgiving thinking he was her grandson. After clearing up the confusion with an exchange of photos, he joked “Can I still get a plate tho?”

Dench texted back, “Of course you can. That’s what grandmas do… Feed everyone.”

Hinton shared the exchange of Twitter, writing “Somebody grandma is coming in clutch this year!! Ayee!!!” A couple of weeks later, he did in fact show up for Dench’s Thanksgiving dinner, and what started as an accident became a yearly tradition. What’s yet to be seen is how this will translate to a full-length feature, but that’s up to Netflix to figure out.

“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,” Dench and Hinton said in a joint statement. “We are so blessed to find a genuine friendship brought together by God from a mistaken text message.”

Over the last six years the celebration has grown to include Hinton’s longtime girlfriend and family. In April 2020, Dench’s husband of 42 years, Lonnie Dench, died from COVID-19 complications. They’ve upheld Lonnie’s presence in the tradition with the inclusion of framed photos of him in the group picture every year.

Abdul Williams (Salt-N-Pepa, The Bobby Brown Story) has signed on to write the screenplay for Netflix. No other details have been announced yet.

 
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