With all five of her bestselling novels being adapted for screen, author Emily Henry has taken on the new challenge of writing the script for Funny Story herself.
Henry’s most recent book was an instant New York Times bestseller and named one of the most anticipated releases of 2024 by TIME, The New York Times, Goodreads, and more ahead of its publication on April 23. Since then, Funny Story has sold over 800,000 copies in North America.
Funny Story has been picked up for a screen adaptation by Lyrical Media and Ryder Picture. Henry is excited to have more personal input on the Funny Story movie. In a recent Substack post, Henry shared her hesitancy to pick up screenwriting, and how that turned into deciding she was the right person for the job.
“I love, so much, the feeling that when humans are together, we can become more than the sum of our parts,” Henry wrote. “It’s like, instead of having two or three or four brains, you open up all these tunnels between them, and there’s all of this extra space. Artistic synergy.”
This “artistic synergy” changed Henry’s mind from previously having “no intention of writing the script” herself.
I love, so much, the feeling that when humans are together, we can become more than the sum of our parts.
Emily Henry
“I left that meeting, with Ryder Picture Company and Lyrical Media, feeling that space crackling,” Henry continued. “I came away from the call feeling not just excited, but eager to get going.”
Henry then shared that she has a script draft, and she believes the production company will keep “the spirit of the book as pure and undiluted as possible.”
In her post, Henry also quelled fears about what is happening with her other four book adaptations, including the Happy Place Netflix show that made recent news as Jennifer Lopez takes the reins for production. Henry is set to co-write the pilot episode.
Henry’s novels with upcoming film adaptations include Beach Read, directed by Yulin Kuang with 20th Century Studios. Book Lovers will be adapted by Tango, with Sarah Heyward writing the script. Henry’s People We Meet On Vacation has Brett Haley and 3000 Pictures to adapt the book.
Henry told her readers that those adaptations are still in the works — and that she has “every reason to believe we aren’t getting BAD MOVIES; we’re getting GREAT ones.”
What's Your Reaction?
