Someone must have spilled the secrets in Hollywood, because movie and television directors caught the memo to turn people’s favorite books into live-action media. Whether it’s the big screen or the phone in your hand, controversy and compliments from book critics and fandoms will follow. So, watch at your own risk.
Live-action tv shows:
“Percy Jackson” Season 2: “The Sea of Monsters”
Disney+ announced the official renewal of the second season of “Percy Jackson” on Feb. 7, 2024. The show is based on the “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” (PJO) series by Rick Riordan. The show is projected to be released in 2025.
Many fans had reservations about the television series after the movies had strayed away from the books, leaving PJO fans severely disappointed. When the first season was released in Dec.2023, it scored Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with a score of 91 percent .
New actors and actresses were cast in the series, as the show largely follows the book series. This specific season, the plot and characters are based on the second book in the series, “The Sea of Monsters.” Andra Day was cast as Athena, Tamara Smart was cast as Thalia Grace, Daniel Diemer was cast as Tyson and Courtney B. Vance will replace Lance Reddick as Zeus, who died before the series was released.
Director and executive producer James Bobin, who directed “Alice Through the Looking Glass,” “The Muppets: Most Wanted” and “Dora and the Lost City of Gold,” along with several other films, wrote in an Instagram post, “Camera test. Excited to get going on this next adventure. Going to be epic.”
“The Summer I Turned Pretty” Season 3: “We’ll Always Have Summer”
The third season of Prime Video’s “The Summer I Turned Pretty,” based on the book series by Jenny Han, will debut in Summer 2025. Han made the announcement in May 2024 during Amazon’s inaugural upfront presentation in New York City, according to Amazon. The tentative release date is Summer 2025.
Several fans were nervous about the show potentially deviating from the book. With so many adaptations supposedly ruining other fandoms, fans did not want their favorite books to be affected. Han told Variety that she understood the fans’ concerns and she had to find a balance between “what the fans are expecting with where the show is going creatively.”
The first season released in June 2022 and was Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with a score of 86 percent. The second season was released in July 2023 and scored 64 percent.
The third season is expected contain 11 episodes, three more than the previous two seasons. It is unsure if this will be the final season in the series or if a potential spinoff series could follow. According to People Magazine, Vernon Sanders, the Co-Head of Television at Amazon Studios, said that Amazon was “already hard at work developing complementary pieces” for the show.
“Missing You”
Netflix announced that Harlan Coben’s “Missing You,” based on the New York Times best-seller, will debut on Jan. 1, 2025. Coben made the announcement on his Instagram on Jan. 22.
The book was generally enjoyed by audiences, and with a star-studded cast, the show is expected to uphold the thriller theme. Coben’s Netflix collection varied in scores on Rotten Tomatoes. “Fool Me Once” and “Safe” scored 71 percent, “The Stranger” scored 87 percent, “The Woods” scored 89 percent, “Stay Close” scored 92 percent and “The Innocent” scored 100 percent.
The book follows Detective Kat Donovan, whose missing fiancé finds her on a dating app. As Kat falls back into her past, details about a separate family tragedy also come into fruition, according to Cosmopolitan. Sean Spencer, who is known for his work “Panic,” “The Lazarus Project” and “Romance,” will be directing the film.
“The Undoing of Alejandro Velasco”
Amazon Prime will be releasing “The Undoing of Alejandro Velasco.” Based on the book written by Diego Boneta, it is set to be released in May 2025 with Boneta starring in the lead role as Alejandro Velasco, according to People. Boneta further announced on Instagram that with his novel debut, there will also be an audiobook (in Spanish and English) narrated by him.
The thriller follows Julian Villarea who gets into trouble with a wealthy family after the death of his friend, Alejandro Velasco. On top of Velasco’s death, Villarea dives into family mysteries and falls into danger from those who want revenge.
“The Hunting Wives”
Starz is debuting their newest “suspenseful and sultry thrill-ride” television series based on May Cobb’s best-selling novel. When a normal girl joins a socialite club, target practice, martinis and bad behavior become intertwined with obsession, seduction and murder.
Brittany Snow plays Sophie O’Neil, Malin Akerman plays Margo Banks, Chrissy Metz plays Starr, Jaime Ray Newman plays Callie and Dermot Mulroney plays Jed Banks. Alex Alberts (“Fightland,” “Plan A”) and Tara Roy (“Free,” “Dreams for Dinner”) are directing the series.
Romance thrillers have become popular in recent years as readers are drawn to the suspenseful pacing, the twisting plots, the deep villains, the complex characters, the shifting moods, the crimes and psychological procedures, and spicy romance. The eight episodes of the new tv series promise to bring viewers and readers all of that.
“Maxton Hall”
Prime Video is continuing the trend of live adaptations with the “Maxton Hall” book series, by Mona Kasten. The series (“Save Me, Save You, Save Us”), originally published in German, will be published in English on July 1, 2025.
According to People, the series was renewed for a second season 10 days after the first season premiere. In a press release, Amazon MGM Studios’ VP of International Originals, James Farrell, called it a “success from Europe that will inspire a global audience.”
The first season scored 67 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. There is no definite release date for the second season tv show, but the project is projected for Spring 2025.
Typically, people are more invested in and are more likely to support book-to-television adaptations. Not only do shows provide a larger timeline for the gradual reveal of “plot lines, add twists, and build tension over entire seasons,” they can also “get more screen time to develop layered characters,” according to Medium. The consistent release of “gives people common talking points in a way watching sporadic movie releases lacks.”
Live-action movies:
“How to Train Your Dragon”
Universal Studios announced that “How to Train Your Dragon,” based on the series by Cressida Crowell in 2003, will be released in theaters on June 13, 2025. The film was directed by Dean DeBlois, who wrote and directed all three of the original animated films.
All three animated films are Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. “How to Train Your Dragon” scored 99 percent, “How to Train Your Dragon 2” scored 92 percent and “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” scored 90 percent.
Mason Thames stars as Hiccup, Nico Parker plays Astrid, Julian Dennison plays Fishlegs Ingerman, Bronwyn James and Harry Trevaldwyn appear as twins Ruffnut and Tuffnut and Gabriel Howell will play Snotlout. Gerard Butler will reprise his role as Hiccup’s father, Stoick the Vast, after voicing the character in the animated trilogy, according to Variety.
There had been a number of racist perspectives commenting that Parker would not be a good fit as Astrid, because portraying Astrid as a historically White Viking would supposedly be more suitable. Others claimed that as a fiction movie, the skin color of the main characters should not matter; For more historical accuracy, Vikings were nomadic and traveled far and wide; thus not all of them looked the same.
“Snow White”
Based on “Sneewittchen” from “Grimms’ Fairy Tales” by the Brothers Grimm (1812), a modern take on “Snow White” will be in theaters on March 21, 2025. This fantasy, live-action musical will be a reimagining of the classic 1937 film, according to Disney.
Rachel Zegler plays as Snow White and Gal Gadot plays as The Evil Queen. A new character, Jonathan, who is the new love interest and replaced Prince Florian, will be played by Andrew Burnap. Marc Webbis, the film’s director, previously directed “The Amazing Spiderman,” “Gifted” and “500 Days of Summer.”
The film was consistently surrounded by controversy over a number of years. In 2022, the film’s release date was stated as March 22, 2024. Then, in October 2023, the film was delayed, which Disney claimed it was due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.
A number of critics argued that Zegler wasn’t “pale enough for the part,” according to Forbes. Zegler’s comments on only taking the role of Snow White because she “needed a job” and stating that the new movie focuses on Snow White becoming leader and was “not going to be saved by the prince” caused particular controversy on TikTok and X (formerly known as Twitter). The absence of dwarfs along with Webb altering the original fairytale sparked major backlash.
“Wicked: Part 2”
While Broadway may have popularized the story, the backstory of “Wicked” originally comes from “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West” by Gregory Maguire. The first part of the movie came out on Nov. 22, 2024. The second part is due to be released on Nov. 21, 2025.
Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with a score of 89 percent, Maguire feels that “the way the characters were represented in the Broadway performances and the movie were well reflective of those he wrote in the book,” according to MassLive.
However, the tragic and bittersweet tones of the novel compared to the film is an understandable shift “as long as the messages of the book were repeated in the film and in the play,” according to Maguire when he spoke to MassLive.
The film leading up to the premiere had its fair share of controversies, such as when Mattel’s merch for the dolls accidentally led consumers to an adult entertainment website. Backlash against Cynthia Erivo, who plays Elphaba, and Ariana Grande, who plays Glinda, as being too emotional while promoting the film, according to CBR.
At the end of the day, these books are pieces of fiction. Creative liberty is allowed.
“People We Meet on Vacation,” “Verity,” “Reminders of Him,” “Project Hail Mary,” “The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping,” “The Batman Part II,” and the new “Harry Potter” television series are projected to be released in 2026.
Kalina Kornacki can be reached at [email protected] or followed on X (formerly Twitter) @KalinaKornacki
