Julia Hart to Direct Netflix Adaptation of Lynn Painter’s Beloved YA Rom-Com ‘Better Than The Movies’
Netflix Adapts ‘Better Than the Movies’ with Julia Hart as Director
Netflix has tapped Julia Hart, known for her work on I’m Your Woman, to direct a feature film adaptation of Lynn Painter’s bestselling young adult novel Better Than the Movies. This project marks the celebration of the novel’s fifth anniversary.
Better Than the Movies, a #1 New York Times bestseller, explores the life of high school senior Liz Buxbaum, who navigates her romantic aspirations through her love of romantic comedies. With the help of her charming yet annoying next-door neighbor, she attempts to capture the attention of her elusive crush, offering a fresh twist on familiar romance tropes like the fake relationship and the enemies-to-lovers dynamic.
Published by Simon & Schuster, the novel has achieved remarkable success, remaining on the New York Times monthly YA paperback list for 41 months and the weekly YA hardcover list for 12 weeks.
In her dual role as director and co-writer, Hart has collaborated on the screenplay with her husband, Jordan Horowitz, who has completed one draft of the script. Heather Flanders has also contributed to the draft. Horowitz will produce the film for Original Headquarters, alongside Shauna Phelan.
This film is the second collaboration between Original Headquarters and Netflix, following Hart’s Don’t Say Good Luck, a teen drama featuring Sunny Sandler, which is set to be released on August 14. Hart and Horowitz also co-wrote Don’t Say Good Luck, which is produced by Adam and Jackie Sandler, Horowitz, Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, and Fred Berger.
Julia Hart made her directorial debut with Miss Stevens, a road-trip dramedy that premiered at SXSW in 2016 and starred Lily Rabe, Timothée Chalamet, and Lili Reinhart. She followed that with Fast Color, featuring Gugu Mbatha-Raw, also spotlighted at the Austin festival. Her directing credits further include the Prime Video crime drama I’m Your Woman and the Disney+ teen films Stargirl and Hollywood Stargirl. Hart is represented by CAA and Lichter, Grossman, Nichols; Horowitz is also represented by the same agencies.
Meanwhile, Lynn Painter, a writer from Illinois, is advancing her career further with a feature adaptation of her bestseller Fake Skating, which is being developed at Sony. Will Gluck’s Olive Bridge is set to produce that project.
