Eight 2025 Novels Already Becoming Movies and TV Shows

The current entertainment landscape has compressed the timeline between literary publication and screen adaptation to unprecedented degrees. Where authors once waited years to see their work optioned, today’s risk-averse studios now pursue film rights with competitive bidding wars that conclude before the average reader purchases a first edition. This shift reflects an industry preference for proven intellectual property with established narrative arcs and built-in fan communities.

Eight novels published in 2025 illustrate this acceleration, spanning psychological thrillers, dystopian romances, and franchise extensions. These projects have already attached major stars, secured distribution partners, and in some cases completed principal photography before the source material reached bookstore shelves. From the Obamas’ production company acquiring multiple prestige projects to legendary filmmakers like M. Night Shyamalan collaborating directly with bestselling authors, these adaptations represent the new standard for literary-to-screen transitions.

Star-Studded Theatrical Features

Several high-profile productions have already secured theatrical distribution and A-list talent, with release dates extending into 2027.

Kill Your Darlings

Peter Swanson’s Kill Your Darlings, published by HarperCollins in June 2025, presents a reverse-chronological thriller examining a marriage built upon unspeakable secrets from four decades prior. United Artists and Amazon MGM Studios secured the rights months before publication, attaching Julia Roberts to produce and star as Wendy Graves opposite an unannounced co-lead. Director James Gray, whose previous literary adaptation The Lost City of Z demonstrated his facility with complex source material, will helm the project. While Gray typically writes his own screenplays, his specific writing credit for this adaptation remains unconfirmed.

Deep Cuts

Holly Brickley’s debut Deep Cuts, released by Penguin Random House on February 25, 2025, triggered an A24 acquisition announcement just forty-eight hours later. The early-2000s set romance follows an opinionated college music obsessive who attempts to mold the talent of an aspiring musician she meets on campus. The project initially courted Saoirse Ronan and Austin Butler for the lead roles, but scheduling conflicts necessitated recasting with Cailee Spaeny and Drew Starkey. Sean Durkin, coming off the critically acclaimed The Iron Claw, will write and direct the feature, with Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein producing through their Central Group banner. Grammy-nominated musician Blake Mills will compose the original score, adding authenticity to the music-centric narrative.

Remain

Nicholas Sparks and M. Night Shyamalan have collaborated on Remain, a supernatural romantic thriller published by Random House in 2025 that critics have described as combining elements of The Notebook with The Sixth Sense. The project originated as a screenplay developed jointly by the author and director, with Sparks subsequently novelizing the concept. Jake Gyllenhaal stars in the Warner Bros. release, which reportedly wrapped production prior to the book’s publication. Shyamalan has indicated that test audiences responded more positively to this film than any previous project in his career. Due to the unique development process, Sparks will receive shared story credit rather than traditional “based on the novel by” attribution. The studio has scheduled the film for February 2027, targeting the Valentine’s Day corridor.

Beautiful Ugly

Alice Feeney’s Beautiful Ugly, published by Flatiron Books in January 2025, follows a writer haunted by his wife’s mysterious disappearance during a telephone call. Hidden Pictures, the production company behind the successful The Housemaid adaptation, acquired the film rights immediately upon publication. While Feeney has multiple projects set up at Netflix, including the miniseries adaptation of His & Hers, Beautiful Ugly appears positioned for theatrical release given Hidden Pictures’ focus on feature films.

Franchise Properties and Fanfiction

Two projects demonstrate how existing intellectual property ecosystems—whether official franchises or unauthorized fanfiction—continue driving studio acquisitions.

Alchemised

Legendary Entertainment made one of the year’s most aggressive acquisitions with Alchemised, a $3 million-plus deal for SenLinYu’s novel published by Del Rey in 2025. The book originated as “Manacled,” a widely-read fanfiction series posted on Archive of Our Own between 2018 and 2019 that explored a dystopian romance between Harry Potter characters Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy. Following significant re-editing to remove direct franchise references, the dystopian narrative—explicitly inspired by The Handmaid’s Tale—transitioned to traditional publication. No director, writer, or cast is currently attached, though the project’s unofficial connection to the wizarding world presents potential franchise opportunities should it reach production.

Sunrise on the Reaping

Suzanne Collins’ Sunrise on the Reaping represents the most commercially secure adaptation on this list, given the multi-billion dollar legacy of The Hunger Games. Published in 2025, the prequel follows a young Haymitch Abernathy during the 50th Hunger Games, which featured twice the standard number of competitors. Lionsgate announced the feature adaptation concurrently with the book’s publication, with franchise veteran Francis Lawrence returning to direct. Joseph Zada leads the cast as the young Haymitch, with Woody Harrelson’s predecessor role now filled by an ensemble including Jesse Plemons, Elle Fanning, Kieran Culkin, Glenn Close, Ralph Fiennes, and Maya Hawke. The studio has already scheduled a November 2026 theatrical release, potentially completing the fastest book-to-screen transition among these titles.

Prestige Television Developments

Streaming platforms have secured two major properties involving Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions, signaling continued interest in literary prestige television.

King of Ashes

Netflix won a competitive bidding war for S. A. Cosby’s King of Ashes, a dark crime thriller drawing comparisons to Breaking Bad and Ozark. The narrative follows an honest financial advisor forced to apply white-collar skills to survive after organized crime brutalizes his small town. Notably, Netflix acquired the property as an ongoing series despite Cosby not having confirmed sequel plans, suggesting potential expansion beyond the source material. Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment and Higher Ground Productions will produce, reuniting the partnership currently developing Cosby’s All the Sinners Bleed for the streamer.

Audition

Kate Kitamura’s Audition, released in April 2025, offers a psychological thriller structured around dual conflicting timelines—one in which the protagonist never had a child, and one in which she did. Higher Ground Productions partnered with a LAIKA subsidiary to secure rights to the novel, marking one of the animation studio’s first forays into live-action production. Lucy Liu is attached to star as the New York actor confronted by Charles Melton’s character, who claims to be her estranged son. Lulu Wang, director of The Farewell and the recent Nicole Kidman-led series Expats, will helm the project and co-write the screenplay with Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Martyna Majok.

Production Timeline and Release Status

The development stages vary significantly across these eight properties:

• Post-Production: Remain (Warner Bros., February 2027 release)
• Filming Completed: Sunrise on the Reaping (Lionsgate, November 2026 release)
• Casting Finalized: Deep Cuts (A24), Kill Your Darlings (United Artists/Amazon MGM), Audition (Higher Ground/LAIKA)
• Early Development: Beautiful Ugly (Hidden Pictures), Alchemised (Legendary), King of Ashes (Netflix)

Several projects face extended timelines due to the packed schedules of attached talent, while others benefit from the streamlined production processes of established franchises. The variety of stages illustrates how modern studios now develop literary properties on parallel tracks, often securing rights, attaching talent, and setting release dates before the first review is published.

What’s After the Movie

Tracking literary adaptations from acquisition through theatrical release requires comprehensive industry intelligence. What’s After the Movie provides detailed coverage of film development updates, cast confirmations, and release calendar changes. Browse our complete movie database to discover additional upcoming adaptations, or visit our industry news section for breaking announcements on projects like these eight 2025 releases.