Romance author Emily Henry now has five of her most recent novels set to be adapted for the big and small screens. Henry’s rom-com writing spree began with “Beach Read,” which came out in the summer of 2020. She has published a book a year since then, with “People We Meet on Vacation” coming out in 2021, “Book Lovers” arriving in 2022, “Happy Place” released in 2023, and “Funny Story” hitting shelves this year.
Three of Henry’s books received adaptation optioning deals for films, with two of them attaching directors. Starting in 2022, multiple studios decided to adapt various Emily Henry books into movies. Although the Writers’ and Actors’ strikes likely delayed any moves in casting, a fourth novel has just been optioned by Jennifer Lopez’s production company for a television series adaptation at Netflix.
Brett Haley has been tapped to direct the adaptation of “People We Meet on Vacation” from Yulin Kuang’s adapted screenplay. Temple Hill’s Marty Bowen, Wyck Godfrey, and Isaac Klausner are producing, with Laura Quicksilver overseeing the project for Temple Hill and Erin Siminoff and Sophie Kaplan overseeing for the studio.
Yulin Kuang will adapt and direct the film adaptation of “Beach Read” for 20th Century Studios with Original Film producing. The novel tells the story of two authors who swap genres for the summer in an attempt to overcome writers’ block.
In March 2023, Tango revealed its intent to adapt Henry’s “Book Lovers.” Sarah Heyward is attached to write the script for the feature film. The story follows Nora, a cutthroat literary agent, and Charlie, a bookish editor, as they repeatedly encounter each other during an August holiday in Sunshine Falls, North Carolina.
“Happy Place” has been optioned by Jennifer Lopez’s Nuyorican Productions and will be adapted into a television series at Netflix. The story follows Harriet and Wyn, who broke up five months ago but must pretend to still be together during a vacation with friends.
Henry herself will pen the script for the feature film adaptation of her most recent novel, “Funny Story.” The adaptation will come from Lyrical Media and Ryder Pictures Company. The story follows children’s librarian Daphne, who, after a breakup, teams up with her ex’s ex-boyfriend Miles in a fake dating scheme.
Lyrical Media’s Alexander Black and Natalie Sellers and Ryder Picture Company’s Aaron Ryder and Andrew Swett will produce the film. Jon Rosenberg and Henry will executive produce, with RPC’s Emma Rappold serving as co-producer. There is no word of a director attachment yet.
