Netflix unveiled its initial slate of eight TV shows from mega-TV producer Shonda Rhimes on Friday, which include adaptations of New York Magazine’s story on Anna Delvey and Ellen Pao’s Silicon Valley memoir.
The already-buzzed about New York Magazine’s story on Anna Delvey details how the social climber duped New York high society. The story by Jessica Pressler recounts how Delvey, an aspiring “It Girl,” nearly bluffed her way into a multi-million dollar deal for her own private club simply by dropping names, dreaming big and throwing around $100 bills.
“I wanted the new Shondaland to be a place where we expand the types of stories we tell, where my fellow talented creatives could thrive and make their best work and where we as a team come to the office each day filled with excitement,” said Rhimes. “Ted and Cindy and everyone at Netflix have been incredible partners in making that happen. This is Shondaland 2.0.”
Most of the projects feature adaptations of previous source material, including:
- Ellen Pao’s memoir, “Reset: My Fight for Inclusion and Lasting Change,” which details the lawsuit she brought against her former employer that sparked intense media scrutiny, shook Silicon Valley to its boys’ club core and pre-saged the Time’s Up movement.
- Isabel Wilkerson’s Jim Crow era South novel, “The Warmth of Other Suns,” which tracks the decades-long migration of African-Americans fleeing the Jim Crow South in search of a better life in the North and the West between 1916 and 1970.
- An untitled adaption of Julia Quinn’s “Bridgerton” novels that will be helmed by “Scandal” executive producer Chris Van Dusen.
- A political-themed series, based on Kate Anderson Bower’s non-fiction book, “The Residence” about the lives of White House staffers.
The other projects include “Pico & Sepulveda,” an 1840s-era series from Janet Leahy set against the backdrop of the then-Mexican state of California; the dark comedy “Sunshine Scouts,” where an apocalyptic disaster spares a rag-tag group of teenage girls at sleepaway camp who must then summon their moxie and survival skills to weather the fallout; and a documentary on the Debbie Allen Dance Academy’s reimagining of the classic ballet, “The Nutcracker.”
“It’s been thrilling to begin this journey with Shonda, Betsy and their team and watch them embrace the full range of creative freedom possible at Netflix,” said Cindy Holland, vice president, original content, Netflix. “Infused with Shonda’s sensibility, the Shondaland slate is shaping up to be something truly special that we know will delight our members around the world.”
The development slate comes roughly a year after Rhimes and her longtime producing partner, Betsy Beers, signed a multi-year deal with Netflix.
You can read more about all of the eight shows below:
Untitled Shonda Rhimes Project
Based on the New York Magazine article How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People by Jessica Pressler. Manhattan makes a new friend like no other. But is she the stuff American dreams are made of or is she New York’s biggest con woman? Is it a con if you enjoy being taken?
* Shonda Rhimes (EP) will create the series.
Untitled Bridgerton Project
Based on Julia Quinn’s best-selling series of novels, this smart feminist take on Regency England romance unveils the glittering, wealthy, sexual, painful, funny and sometimes lonely lives of the women and men in London’s high society marriage mart as told through the eyes of the powerful Bridgerton family.
* Scandal veteran Chris Van Dusen (EP) will adapt and showrun the series.
“The Warmth of Other Suns”
Based on Pulitzer-Prize winning author Isabel Wilkerson’s award-winning book of the same name, this powerful groundbreaking series tracks the decades-long migration of African-Americans fleeing the Jim Crow South in search of a better life in the North and the West between 1916 and 1970.
*National Humanities Medal recipient, MacArthur Genius Grant recipient and 2-time Drama Desk winning playwright Anna Deavere Smith (EP) is set to adapt.
“Pico & Sepulveda”
Set in the 1840s against the surreal and sensual backdrop of the then-Mexican state of California, the series tracks the end of an idyllic era there as American forces threaten brutality and war at the border to claim this breathtaking land for its own.
*Emmy-award writer Janet Leahy (EP) will create the series.
“Reset: My Fight for Inclusion and Lasting Change”
Netflix and Shondaland have acquired the rights to Ellen Pao’s groundbreaking memoir detailing her life and career, including the lawsuit she brought against her former employer that sparked intense media scrutiny, shook Silicon Valley to its boys’ club core and pre-saged the Time’s Up movement.
“The Residence”
Netflix and Shondaland have acquired the rights to Kate Andersen Brower’s brilliant nonfiction book The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House, which offers a vividly accurate insider’s account of White House residence staffers and the upstairs downstairs lives they share with the First Families at one of the most famous homes in history.
“Sunshine Scouts”
In this darkly comedic half-hour series, an apocalyptic disaster spares a rag-tag group of teenage girls at sleepaway camp who must then summon their moxie and survival skills to weather the fallout and ensure all that remains of humanity abides by the Sunshine Scout Law.
*Writer/actress Jill Alexander (Co-EP) will create the series.
“Hot Chocolate Nutcracker”
This documentary offers a behind-the-scenes look at the Debbie Allen Dance Academy’s award-winning reimagining of the classic ballet, The Nutcracker. This staged contemporization – with its inclusive cast of all ages and its blend of dance traditions – has further cemented Debbie Allen’s legacy as one of the greatest forces for good in dance.
*Oliver Bokelberg (DP/Director Scandal) will serve as director, cinematographer and producer.