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A month ago we reported that The Carrie Diaries, a TV series project based on Sex and the City author Candace Bushnell’s recent book about Carrie Bradshaw’s high school years, was headed to the CW. That has now become a reality after the project was pitched to the network on Friday and bought in the room. Under the deal, which is being finalized, Warner Bros. TV is producing with Gossip Girl executive producers Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage’s studio-based Fake Empire banner. Former Sex and the City writer/producer Amy Harris, who is writing for Gossip Girl this season, is penning the adaptation and executive producing with Bushnell, Schwartz, Savage and Len Goldstein. The Carrie Diaries is a young-adult novel that chronicles Carrie’s senior year of high school in a small New England town. Because of its young skew, it was never considered for HBO, which adapted Bushnell’s anthology book Sex and the City into the hugely popular comedy series created by Darren Star and starring Sarah Jessica Parker.
But Warner Bros. TV, which bought the rights to The Carrie Diaries book from Bushnell, reached out to its corporate sibling HBO. During the series’ 6-year run, Bushnell’s characters evolved and their lives took numerous turns. WBTV’s rights deal with HBO, which is now being nailed down, will allow the writers of a The Carrie Diaries series to incorporate characters, traits and developments introduced on the Sex and the City series along with the core source material, Bushnell’s book. As for Star and Parker, neither of them is attached to the new project, at least not for now.





What happened to CW’s “no high school shows”?
Actually, it’s not about high-scool dramas, but I thought they walked away from the bad wealthy girls shows…
Please no, Schwartz is a one-season wonder.
If his one hit is THE OC — one of the best first seasons of any show EVER — is his one hit wonder, i’m happy for it. I’m just surprised he has not been able to duplicate it — chuck was nowhere near the standard of the OC and i started gossip girl but didn’t get that interested it, so can’t speak for that show.
SO IS THERE NO MOVIE — IS THIS WHAT EVERYONE WAS TALKING ABOUT A PREQUEL?????
This makes me exceptionally happy. This material in the capable (and strong and creative and talented) hands of Amy Harris ensures that the project will find success. Well done, WB-TV
Dear oh dear. Can someone explain to me how anything (other than the clothes) will be different to Gossip Girl?
You know you’ll love it. XOXO
Ahahahhahahaaaa! I choked on my coffee. Thank you.
I thought Pedowitz was making moves in the right direction. This reeks of another Gossip Girl ~.8 series.
Yes, but remember he also said you can’t just entirely change the network overnight.The majority of The CW’s audience is still young females, so they have to continue developing shows aimed at young females.
The audience for other types of shows isn’t really there yet.You have to slowly develop shows aimed at other demos in order to get those other viewers to the network, then once they’re there, you can continue making these other shows and phase out the high school ones.
Otherwise, if they just started producing other types of shows right off the bat they’re going to fail because the audience isn’t there.Over the last 6 years, Thew CW has built up a reputation for a certain type of show.And that’s what the average viewer thinks about the network.It’s where you find teen dramas and nothing more.It’s going to be hard to get people to change their minds and actually tune in.I’m sure they will, but it takes time.
They’ll put on 2 or 3 shows that go against what we’re used to seeing on The CW, while continuing to produce/develop the shows they’re known for.If those shows are good, they’ll get talked about and good word of mouth will spread.More people will probably start checking out the shows.And each season they’ll add more new shows and slowly phase out the older ones.
It’s a process, you can’t do it overnight.Look what happened with TechTV and G4.Those were 2 fringe networks, yet they were both very well liked, as one focused on technology and one focused on gaming.Then they both merged into G4/TechTV and it was a pretty cool network that was a cool blend of both technology and gaming.
Over the next next 6 months, 2 of the shows that originated on TechTv got canceled and several TechTV personalities were fired.
9 months after the merger, G4 had taken over and TechTV was dropped.They eventually dropped all but 2 of their original shows and 3 personalities and abandoned both the tech and video game network format.They basically decided to mimic MTV and Spike TV, alienating both of their former audiences.
G4 has to be one of the most despised networks on TV.
Won’t they just let this poor franchise die already?
another series for them to ruin – or it will be good the first season and then tank.
i won’t be watching this or it depends on how amy’s episodes are for gg but i doubt it. i don’t like savage schwartz or safran and their creative direction at ALL.
It makes me happy that HBO let the CW use the original material. This way the characters make sense. I’m glad the producer/writer did this, it’s perfect.
Why not?They’re both in the Time Warner family.It makes sense that they’d cooperate with each other.
Great. Now we go from a bunch of over-sexed golden girls to over-sexed tweens.
Another little bitch show for the lil’ bitch network…
Crack team you’ve got developing over there. Now if only you could work in a Killer Clown or Grandma Ghost and you’d hit the network’s target points.
C’mon, The CW will NEVER stop with teen high school shows. It’s just what the network is. HOWEVER, at least we are getting a variety of shows now… not JUST teen dramas. Look at this yea: Ringer and Hart of Dixie are both more adult skewing, while H8R is a reality show (so not a teen drama), and then there is The Secret Circle, which is probably the most guaranteed success of all four new shows, and it IS a teen drama.
Say next year they premiere The Carrie Diaries, and two or three other shows. The Carrie Diaries might be the only teen drama they introduce… plus I have a feeling Gossip Girl won’t see Fall 2012. 9O21O may not either… and One Tree Hill is over in the Spring.
Can’t wait to watch the first season. It’ll be amazing. After that, the worst show on television.
I feel like after the long-awaited/needed changes in genres the CW has branched-out to (horror, sci-fi, mystery, action); this is taking a step back. They finally have more than just teenage girl-targeted shows and now they bring this one in. I guess they are thinking ahead though, because One Tree Hill will finally be put to sleep in early 2012, Gossip Girl might have one more season in it after this one, and 90210 is probably going to see its final season this year if the ratings do not drastically improve. I’m guessing this will be the “sure bet” for a pilot to season order come pilot season, like Secret Circle was.
I guess on the plus side is that they will be able to use things to match it up with the original series.
kudos, pony-tail amy! i’ve worked with the delightful ms harris. that’s her room name. it’s cute. she smells like ponies that have just been bathed. she’s a firecracker.
I know a twenty year old actress who looks identical to Charlotte York. She has grown tired of being told she resembles her…but I think when she hears of this adaption she will be psyched. Her name is Olivia Lauren and she attended the Lee Strasberg Institute.
I like the new show called Ringer. However, what I would really like to see is a season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 8. It does not have to be based on the comic books. Ringer needs some help with the writing in the form of Joss Whedon. Because I miss horror element that what made Buffy the Vampire Slayer a great show. The cast of Buffy seemed to fit perfectly together. The daughter on Ringer reminds me a lot of Dawn. I guess that I am hoping the Bridget or Siobhan is really Buffy herself on the run from the FBI. That would be the best twist of all!
I for one think its a good idea. Carrie starts from a modest up bringing if uve read the books. It is also completely different from gossip girl minus the common setting after Carrie moves to NYC. I feel that the portrayl of Carrie’s character in the book is refreshing. In todays society we young women need a more independent less man dependent character on tv. Carrie is a good example. Don’t need any more women dependent on men like Bella Swan.
I completely agree with you, Brittany! I also read the book and truly enjoyed it. Although we are no longer teenagers (or at least I’m not), I think that this show could potentially bring in some of the crowd that loved Sex in the City.
The wonderful thing about the Carrie Diaries was that it told the story where Carrie came from- a small town girl with big ambitions. Sounds like a number of girls/women could identify with her. Throw in the emotions from her first real boyfriend, her first back-stabbing girl friend, and her first taste of the Big Apple and writing. Its where she begins to transform into the Carrie Bradshaw that we all adore.
I only hope that they don’t make it too overly dramatic and catty. The beautiful thing about Sex in the City was the simplicity of it- please don’t mess it up.
you should cast haunted sunshine girl as carrie ..
she is so carrie http://www.youtube.com/user/hauntedsunshinegirl?blend=2&ob=video-mustangbase
she would be a great carrie .. cast her now !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jessica Goy is right. Haunted Sunshine Girl would be a perfect young Carrie.
I am so thrilled to hear this, I am a huge fan of the book!!!! Cant wait