Fifth Season has acquired the rights to the erotic novel “Beautiful Bastard” with plans to develop it as a TV series, Variety has learned exclusively.
The novel, which was published by Simon & Schuster in 2013, is written by Christina Lauren, the pen name of co-authors Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings. Both Hobbs and Billings will co-write the TV version, with Bill Dubuque supervising. Dubuque will also produce with Kristen Campo, with the two having recently worked together on the Fifth Season-Netflix series “His & Hers.”
Per the official description, “Beautiful Bastard” follows Chloe Mills, who is said to be “smart, ambitious, and on a fast track in her career—until her boss becomes the one complication she can’t ignore. Bennett Ryan is brilliant, demanding, and newly returned to Chicago to help run his family’s global media empire, and he expects nothing less than total control—of his business and himself. What he doesn’t expect is Chloe: a sharp, fearless junior executive who challenges him at every turn and refuses to be intimidated by his power. Their chemistry is instant and combustible, blurring the line between rivalry and desire as every argument crackles with temptation. As ambition collides with attraction, Chloe and Bennett must decide how much they’re willing to risk for a connection that refuses to stay professional.”
The novel was the first of what became known as the “Beautiful” series. Nine more novels and novellas have been published since, with the books having been translated into more than 30 languages. “Beautiful Bastard” has become an international bestseller, ranking on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller list and being named a finalist for Goodreads Readers’ Choice Romance of the Year.
Hobbs and Billings have written 21 New York Times bestselling novels. They have received numerous accolades for their work, and their novel “In a Holidaze” is being adapted for Netflix with Rob Lowe and Maddie Ziegler starring.
Christina Lauren is repped by WME, Root Literary, and Weintraub Tobin. Dubuque is repped by WME and Goodman Genow. Campo is repped by WME and The Nord Group LLP..
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