Sally Rooney’s Conversations with Friends has been given a straight-to-series order by US streaming service, Hulu.
The series will consist of 12 half-hour episode and will feature the creative team behind Normal People.
“We loved working with Hulu on ‘Normal People’ — they are an inspiring and very talented team and all of us at Element are delighted to be partnering with them again, alongside our friends at the BBC, on the screen adaptation of Sally Rooney’s incredible first novel, Conversations with Friends,” Executive Producer Ed Guiney said in a statement.
Vice President of Hulu, Beatrice Springborn said that “Sally Rooney perfectly and beautifully captures the complicated dynamics of relationships in her stories.”
“After bringing that to life in Normal People to an overwhelmingly positive response, we are honoured to do the same with Conversations With Friends. We are excited to continue our creative partnership with Sally, Element Pictures, Lenny and the BBC, which has been a dream collaboration.”
What We Know About the ‘Conversations With Friends’ Adaptation
Update: May 12, 2020
If you binged Normal People within five minutes of it dropping on Stan and are already looking for another Sally Rooney fix, you won’t have to wait too long.
Already in the pipeline is Rooney’s popular novel Conversations With Friends and will be adapted to TV by the same creative team who worked on the recent BBC3 hit.
When asked in an interview whether the popular series would be getting a second season, co-producer Ed Guiney said “not in the short term”.
“We’ve turned our attention – we’re adapting Conversations with Friends as a television series,” he told publication Heart.
A second season isn’t off the cards just yet, however, as director Lenny Abrahamson is keen for a look at 10-years into the future.
“I have a fantasy of doing a kind of 10-year… you know, seeing where they are in 10 years’ time sort of thing. It’d be good,” he said.
While we have to wait to delve back into the lives of Marianne and Connell, at least we have another beautiful series to look forward to and here’s what we already know about the Conversations With Friends adaptation.
What is Conversations With Friends?
Some fans have mistaken this novel for a sequel to Normal People, however, it actually came before and follows a completely separate storyline.
Described by Rooney herself as “not a conventional love story”, the novel centres around two college students and the strange, unexpected connection they forge with a married couple.
It is told by Frances, a 21-year-old student studying in Dublin and is based on Frances’ friendship with her ex-girlfriend Bobbi and how this friendship changes when they are interviewed by a journalist called Melissa. The pair befriend Melissa and become friends with her actor husband, Nick.
What are the Themes Behind the Story?
The story is a lot more complicated than Normal People and has LGBTQ+ representation. It also looks at adultery, feminism, sex — what else can we expect from such a talented author.
Who is the Creative Team Behind it?
According to Ginney, “It’s the same basic team. Lenny (Abrahamson) is going to direct it and is across it as an executive producer. And Alice Birch and all of us at Element Pictures.
“So that’s what we’ll be turning our attention to next.”
In an interview with the BBC, Abrahamson said that he loves the “depth, humour and freshness” of the novel and it was “an honour to be involved in bringing it to the screen.”
“I’m particularly happy that my connection to Sally and her work is set to continue. Making Normal People has been a singular pleasure and I’m excited to be working with the same brilliant team again on Conversations With Friends.”
When announcing the adaptation recently, BBC executive Piers Wegner said it was “a decision that made itself”.
“We will commission work from Sally Rooney for as long as she writes it. We think she’s such an exciting voice, in the way that she’s able to write about young people’s lives in a really direct and authentic way, is – her work speaks for itself, really.”
Who Will Star and When Will it Be Released?
Unfortunately, there is no word on either, however, we’re keeping our ears to the ground for any rumblings because if it’s anything like Normal People — we cannot wait.