Freida McFadden’s The Divorce Sells To Studiocanal For Movie Adaptation
In a competitive situation, Studiocanal has landed rights to bestselling author Freida McFadden‘s forthcoming thriller The Divorce, slating it for a feature adaptation.
Studiocanal and Working Title will produce, with Studiocanal fully financing. Ron Halpern and Joe Naftalin will oversee development and production for Studiocanal, which will release The Divorce theatrically across the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Benelux, Australia and NZ and handle global distribution.
Publishing via Sourcebooks imprint Poisoned Pen Press on May 26, The Divorce follows Naomi, who becomes obsessed with the younger woman her husband leaves her for. The fixation leads her down a rabbit hole culminating in the revelation of shocking secrets.
The project reunites McFadden with Studiocanal following their international release of The Housemaid, Paul Feig’s adaptation of her breakout thriller starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried, which grossed over $400 million worldwide and has quickly led to work on a sequel.
In a statement on the competitive book option, Anna Marsh, CEO of Studiocanal and Chief Content Officer of Canal+ Group, said, “We are thrilled to be working with Freida McFadden on our adaptation of The Divorce. From the very first page, it was utterly compelling. Freida has a rare ability to draw readers – and viewers – into an unsettling sense of comfort, before brilliantly pulling the rug from under them. The Divorce is ambitious, aspirational and irresistibly addictive storytelling at its best, and marks an exciting new chapter for Studiocanal Stories. I would like to congratulate the Studiocanal team on this landmark deal, which powerfully demonstrates our commitment to nurturing distinctive literary voices for the screen.”
McFadden said, “I’m delighted to be working with the teams at Studiocanal and Working Title to bring The Divorce to the big screen. From the start, they have come forward with an unparalleled enthusiasm and a strong vision for how to get this project off the ground. I can’t wait to see what unfolds!”
A physician turned author of page-turners, McFadden has spent her literary career writing under a pseudonym, though she recently revealed her real name to be Sara Cohen. In addition to sequel The Housemaid’s Secret, reteaming The Housemaid distributor Lionsgate and producer Hidden Pictures, she recently set up an Apple adaptation of her thriller The Teacher, as well as a Sony adaptation of her book The Surrogate Mother. Other recent titles from the author include Dear Debbie and The Boyfriend.
The book option was spearheaded by Studiocanal Stories, the studio’s new label dedicated to literary adaptations, with Angela Cheng Caplan of Cheng Caplan Company negotiating on McFadden’s behalf. In addition to Cheng Caplan, McFadden is repped by Christina Hogrebe of Jane Rotrosen Agency and Allison Binder of Goodman, Genow, Schenkman.
