EXCLUSIVE: A 2025 summer read is not only off the IP market, it is well on its way to becoming a TV series.
MGM Television is developing a series adaptation of Park Avenue, the debut novel by #1 New York Times bestselling YA author Renee Ahdieh, which was published June 3. Johanna Lee (Dune, Scandal) is writing and executive producing the project, which will be produced by Escape Artists through their first-look deal with MGM Television.
The auction for Park Avenue was held last summer, with MGM Television landing the book In a very competitive situation with several studios bidding. The project was put in internal development and the finished script is expected to be taken out to buyers soon.
Published by Flatiron Books with Caroline Bleeke as editor, Park Avenue has drawn comparisons to The White Lotus and Crazy Rich Asians. It follows a hyper-ambitious lawyer and fixer, Jia Song, who gets pulled in to manage a crisis with one of her firm’s biggest, most unpredictable clients, the famous Park family, whose Korean beauty brand Mirae is worth a billion dollars. She quickly becomes embroiled in the siblings’ back-stabbing family politics and over the top, gilded world. As Jia wades through the lies and subterfuge, chasing the truth across the globe on private jets, she begins to unearth and uncover Park family secrets, and learns where the bodies are buried. Literally.
“We are incredibly excited to announce the adaptation of Renée Ahdieh’s novel, Park Avenue,” said Lindsay Sloane, Head of MGM U.S. Scripted Television, Amazon MGM Studios. “Ahdieh’s characters are richly developed, allowing for a deep and engaging narrative. The series is in great hands with our talented showrunner Johanna Lee taking the helm. In a highly competitive situation to acquire the rights to Park Avenue, we also want to express our deepest gratitude to our partners at Escape Artists for their collaboration in bringing this remarkable project to fruition.”
Escape Artists, founded by Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, Steve Tisch and David Bloomfield, has been in business with MGM Television since the company produced the studio’s 2019 original series Perpetual Grace LTD for then-Epix.
“When I first read Renée’s incredible book, I was immediately hooked,” Black said. “Then I heard Johanna’s vision and was convinced this was going to be something truly special. Together with Lindsay Sloane and our partners at MGM Television, we’re excited to build a series that feels bold, fresh, and timely for today’s audiences.”
Ahdieh, an Amazon Best Book of the Year winner and a #BookTok mainstay, is the internationally bestselling author of The Wrath & the Dawn series, the Flame in the Mist series, The Beautiful quartet, and the picture book, Emilio Sloth’s Modern Manners, with her works selling over a million copies.
“Working with the venerated team at Escape Artists and MGM on this project has been an absolute highlight of my career,” Ahdieh said. “If someone had told me that my book about Korean American immigrants would resonate with so many people from all walks of life, I would not have believed it. I am beyond thankful for the passion and excellence this team and Johanna Lee brings to this project, and I can’t wait to share it with everyone.”
The deal was brokered by UTA. Ahdieh is repped by Barbara Poelle at Word One Literary and Mary Pender at WME
