The new take on a book series of the same name will have 10 episodes with Walden Media producing the series alongside De Luca Productions.
- Mar 1, 2019
AceShowbiz - Another classic TV series is getting a reboot treatment. Netflix has given a straight-to-series order to a live-action dramedy "The Baby-Sitters Club", which is based on the iconic Ann M. Martin book series of the same name.
The books tell a story of a group of best friends living in Stoneybrook, Connecticut who form a club dedicated to providing baby-sitting services for local parents. The new take on the book series will have 10 episodes with Walden Media producing the series alongside De Luca Productions.
Attached as the executive producers is Michael De Luca ("Fifty Shades of Grey"). He will be joined by Lucy Kitada ("Embeds"). Meanwhile, "GLOW" writer Rachel Shukert has been tapped to serve as showrunner. Lucia Aniello ("Broad City") is on board to direct and executive produce.
Netflix reveals that its new series will be "a contemporary take on the original books." It will center on four characters, Kristy Thomas, Mary Anne Spier, Claudia Kishi, Stacey McGill and Dawn Schafer, who will all return to the small-town setting of Stoneybrook, Connecticut for the Netflix adaptation.
"I'm amazed that there are so many passionate fans of 'The Baby-Sitters Club' after all these years, and I'm honored to continue to hear from readers -- now grown, who have become writers, editors, teachers, librarians, filmmakers -- who say that they see a reflection of themselves in the characters of Kristy and her friends," Martin said. "So I'm very excited about the forthcoming series on Netflix, which I hope will inspire a new generation of readers and leaders everywhere."
"The themes of 'The Baby-Sitters Club' still resonate 30 years after the original book series was released and there has never been a more opportune time to tell an aspirational story about empowering young female entrepreneurs," Melissa Cobb, VP of Kids & Family at Netflix, added. "Together with Ann M. Martin and the team at Walden Media, our ambition is to contemporize the storylines and adventures of this iconic group of girlfriends to reflect modern-day issues."
Prior to this, the books have been adapted into a short-lived TV series which aired in 1990 on HBO. Additionally, Martin's works, which was first published in 1986, were later adapted for the big screen in 1995. The movie version starred Rachael Leigh Cook, Larisa Oleynik and Schuyler Fisk.
