The CW has emerged as the favorite to land the Sex and the City prequel, The Carrie Diaries. HBO, which holds the rights to the Candace Bushnell book about Carrie Bradshaw’s High School years, is said to be looking for a more age appropriate outlet for the series than their own brand which caters to the True Blood, Entourage, R-rated fare.
The Carrie Diaries follows Carrie Bradshaw, the character memorably played by Sarah Jessica Parker in the HBO series Sex and the City and in two subsequent feature films, when she was a bright and fashionable teenager living in New England in the 1980’s.
The book begins with Carrie in High School and chronicles her attempts to become a writer, her relationship with her single father and two sisters and her eventual friendship with a friend’s cool New York cousin, Samantha Jones. The book’s sequel Summer and the City was released in April and fully introduces Carrie’s cool new New York friends Samantha Jones and Miranda Hobbes.
This isn’t the first we’ve heard of an adaptation of The Carrie Diaries. In February, /Film reported that Gossip Girl and Green Lantern star Blake Lively was rumored for a feature adaptation of the book with Sex and the City creator Michael Patrick King writing and directing but nothing came of the rumor.
Now, HBO and CW are allegedly putting a deal together to spin the book into a series with Chuck producer Josh Schwartz in charge. The networks will need to close a deal for the series before casting can begin, though it’s fair to speculate that the role of young Carrie Bradshaw will be highly sought after among Hollywood’s young actress set.
As for Sex and the City creator Michael Patrick King and star/executive producer Sarah Jessica Parker, Deadline reported, when they broke the story of The Carrie Diaries series adaptation, that both King and Parker have denied involvement.
Stay tuned as we will let you know if HBO and CW finalize their deal for The Carrie Diaries.