Netflix is developing a young adult drama series based on Curtis Sittenfeld’s bestselling debut novel ‘Prep’, with ‘One Day’ creator Nicole Taylor attached as writer and showrunner.
As per the Hollywood Reporter, the series follows Lee Fiora, a scholarship student from Indiana who attends the prestigious Ault boarding school in Massachusetts. As an outsider among her wealthier classmates, Lee navigates adolescence, social hierarchies and the challenges of fitting in.
Taylor will executive produce the series alongside Sittenfeld, Will Ferrell, Jessica Elbaum and Alix Taylor of Gloria Sanchez Productions.
Taylor described ‘Prep’ as her favourite novel, saying she had wanted to adapt it since first reading it 20 years ago. She praised the book’s portrayal of an introspective, bookish teenage girl and its examination of social mobility.
Sittenfeld also welcomed the adaptation, saying Taylor’s scripts had helped her understand both the novel and herself in a new way. She added that she was eager to see the story of privilege, longing and teenage angst brought to the screen.
Published in 2005, ‘Prep’ earned critical acclaim and became a bestseller. The Netflix project appears to be the first screen adaptation of one of Sittenfeld’s novels to move forward. A film based on her 2024 novel ‘Romantic Comedy’ is also in development at New Line and Hello Sunshine, while Hulu previously developed a series based on her alternate-history novel ‘Rodham’ in 2020, but the project did not progress beyond development.
