Montgomery native Sarah Catherine Hook is moving from the luxury resort of “The White Lotus” to a fight for survival in her first major feature-film starring role.
Hook has been tapped to star in “Crush,” a 20th Century Studios thriller that puts her character in the coils of a massive python.
According to Deadline, the project marks Hook’s first big starring role in a feature film, with production expected to begin in Australia this fall.
Official plot details are being kept under wraps, but Deadline previously reported the film follows a woman hiking alone in the Everglades who wakes to find herself trapped in the crushing coils of a massive python. Inspired by true events, the survival thriller is expected to unfold primarily in real time as she fights to stay alive.
Julius Avery, who directed “Overlord,” is set to direct from a script by John Fischer.
For Alabama viewers who watched Hook’s career take off with “The White Lotus,” the new role is another step in a journey that started much closer to home.
Hook was born and raised in Montgomery and graduated from Montgomery Academy in 2013. Her performing career did not start in front of a television or movie camera. It started with music.
She participated in the Alabama All-State Choral Festival in 2008, and her involvement in Montgomery Academy’s choral program stretched back to fifth grade.
As a senior, Hook was named the Alabama Vocal Association’s 2013 Female Outstanding Choral Student. Montgomery Academy said Hook had been active in the school’s choral department since fifth grade and served for two years as soprano section leader of the Upper School Chorus.
The school also recognized Hook that year with departmental awards for excellence in both drama and music. Montgomery Academy’s 2013 Upper School Awards list her as the recipient in both categories.
Hook went on to SUNY Purchase, where she earned a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance: Opera in 2017. According to SUNY Purchase, it was while studying there that Hook “caught the acting bug” and attended the Atlantic Theater Company Summer Intensive.
Her early screen work included an appearance in “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” and she made her film debut in “The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It” in 2021. She later starred in Netflix’s “First Kill.”
Then came “The White Lotus.”
Hook played Piper Ratliff, the college-age daughter of the wealthy Ratliff family, alongside Parker Posey, Jason Isaacs, Patrick Schwarzenegger and Sam Nivola. Deadline described the role in the Thailand-set third season as Hook’s breakout.
More recently, Hook appeared in Netflix’s “People We Meet on Vacation,” an adaptation of Emily Henry’s bestselling novel. Netflix ranked the movie No. 7 among its most-watched films globally in the first half of 2026 with 77.7 million views.
Hook also stars opposite Rhys Ifans and Lily Rabe in the independent film “Capsized,” which premiered at the Edinburgh Film Festival.
Now, the Montgomery Academy graduate who began performing in school choruses will take on her biggest feature-film role yet — this time with a giant python as her co-star.
Sherri Blevins is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You may contact her at [email protected].
