Bella Thorne - H 2015
AP Images/InvisionABC Family — soon to be known as Freeform — is expanding its relationship with Pretty Little Liars boss I. Marlene King.
The network has ordered to pilot Bella Thorne drama Famous in Love, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
King and Rebecca Serle will pen the pilot. King will exec produce alongside Dan Farah (MTV’s The Shannara Chronicles) and Miguel Arteta (The Carrie Diaries), the latter of whom will also direct. Serle will co-executive produce. Famous in Love is produced by Long Lake Media, Farah Films and Carmina Productions in association with Warner Horizon Television.
“We could not be more excited to extend our relationship with hitmaker I. Marlene King,” said Karey Burke, exec vp programming and development at ABC Family. “With Famous in Love, Marlene takes us behind the scenes of young Hollywood to tell a sexy, soapy tale about what it’s like to make a movie — and fall in love — in L.A. We are also thrilled to welcome the talented Bella Thorne to our network and cannot wait to get started on our next can’t-miss show.”
Put in development in April, the drama is based Serle’s novel of the same name. Thorne (MTV’s Scream) stars as Paige, an ordinary college student who gets her big break after auditioning for the starring role in a Hollywood blockbuster. She must now navigate her new star-studded life and undeniable chemistry with her two co-leads while uncovering the truth about what happened to a famous missing pop star.
Little Brown published the book and its sequel, Truly Madly Famously, which was released today.
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Famous joins an ABC Family pilot slate that also includes single-camera comedy Tough Cookie, Tim Kring drama Beyond, multicam comedy Georgeous Morons, hotel thriller Stay and drama Guilt.
ABC Family, which is undergoing a rebranding that will kick off in January when it is renamed Freeform, plans to double its original programming in the next four years under president Tom Ascheim. The Disney-owned network recently handed out a straight-to-series pickup for a comedy based on the life of Nicki Minaj. Its scripted roster includes Baby Daddy, The Fosters, Switched at Birth, Young & Hungry, Stitchers, Pretty Little Liars, Recovery Road, Kevin From Work and Shadowhunters.
Thorne, whose credits include Shake It Up and The Duff, is repped by WME. King, who also was behind the network’s PLL spinoff Ravenswood, is also with WME.
