‘This Bird Has Flown’ Film Based On Music Biz Novel By The Bangles’ Susanna Hoffs In Works At Universal

Matt Grobar
·4 min read
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Universal Pictures has snapped up rights to This Bird Has Flown, the upcoming debut novel from The Bangles’ Susanna Hoffs, who will adapt her own work for the screen.

Liza Chasin and Bruna Papandrea — who recently partnered for the first time on the Netflix limited series Anatomy of a Scandal, based on Sarah Vaughan’s same-name novel — will reteam to produce the film adaptation for 3Dot Productions and Made Up Stories, respectively. (The pair are also currently developing a series based on Vaughan’s novel Reputation, as we told you first in February.)

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Set for publication via Little, Brown and Company on April 4, 2023, This Bird Has Flown is billed as a romantic comedy pulling back the curtain on the music business via the introduction of a very endearing character and her equally charming cohort.

Steve Hutensky and Sarah Harvey on behalf of Made Up Stories and Margaret Chernin on behalf of 3Dot Productions will also produce, with Senior Executive Vice President of Production Erik Baiers overseeing the project for Universal.

“As a lifelong fiction, film, and music junkie, writing the novel was the realization of a dream,” said Hoffs. “As I was writing This Bird Has Flown, songs provided the score; I visualized the action and unfolding dialogue as if I were watching a movie spring to life in my head. Getting to adapt the book for the screen is the cherry on top of this joyous experience.

“I’m also a long-time fan of Liza’s and Bruna’s work,” added the This Bird Has Flown author. “When my book-to-film agent, Sylvie Rabineau, shared a list of potential producers, I zeroed in on them, but they were listed separately. They loved the characters and frisson between them, the peek behind the curtain of a thirty-something female musician struggling to survive in that world. When they decided to collaborate on the film adaptation, and then Erik Baiers at Universal connected with the novel, too, I knew we had our ultimate dream team!”

“We knew we had to team up again when we read Susanna’s incredible book. She literally had us at hello!” Papandrea and Chasin shared in a joint statement. “Her experience in the music biz and her deep love for big romantic movies made it so clear to us that we wanted to work with her on the adaptation. And the icing on the cake is getting to do it with the brilliant folks at Universal.”

A pioneering force within the male-dominated world of rock and roll, Hoffs is best known as the co-founder of the beloved pop-rock band The Bangles, having partnered with Debbi and Vicki Peterson to form it in 1981. With The Bangles, she recorded and released a string of chart-topping singles including “Manic Monday,” “Walk Like an Egyptian,” “Hazy Shade of Winter” and “Eternal Flame,” which she also co-wrote.

Hoffs embarked on a solo career following the disbanding of The Bangles in 1989. She later wrote and recorded music for the Austin Powers trilogy helmed by her husband Jay Roach, thereby fulfilling a lifelong dream to sing Burt Bacharach’s “The Look of Love” and “What’s it all About Alfie.” The artist recently completed a solo album of new music produced by Peter Asher, which is set for release this spring.

Chasin founded the film and television production company 3Dot Productions in 2018, following an illustrious 26-year run at Working Title Films. Her company is currently in post-production on Lonely Planet, a Netflix feature starring Laura Dern and Liam Hemsworth, from writer-director Susannah Grant. Its recent releases include Anatomy of a Scandal and Paramount Pictures’ box-office hit The Lost City, starring Sandra Bullock, Channing Tatum, Daniel Radcliffe and Brad Pitt. 3Dot has a first-look film deal with Netflix, as well as a first look television deal with Fifth Season, the global film and TV studio previously known as Endeavor Content.

Made Up Stories is a development and production company founded by Papandrea in 2017 which recently produced the Mike Barker-directed adaptation of Jessica Knoll’s novel Luckiest Girl Alive — a Mila Kunis starrer, which came in as Netflix’s #1 movie globally upon its October debut. The company’s recent TV credits include Netflix’s Anatomy of a Scandal and Pieces of Her; the Apple TV+ anthology Roar starring Nicole Kidman, Cynthia Erivo, Merritt Wever and Alison Brie; the genre-bending romantic comedy Wolf Like Me for Peacock and Stan that is currently filming its second season; and the Spectrum Originals women’s basketball drama Long Slow Exhale.

Made Up Stories recently wrapped production on the Prime Video series The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, adapted by Sarah Lambert from Holly Ringland’s debut novel. Sigourney Weaver leads that drama set for release in 2023. Papandrea’s banner is also currently producing the film adaptation of Jane Harper’s novel Force of Nature, a follow-up to its 2020 adaptation of her novel The Dry, with Eric Bana reprising his role and Robert Connolly directing.

Hoffs is represented by The Gernert Company, WME and Behr Abramson Levy; Chasin by Hansen, Jacobson, Teller; and Papandrea by WME.

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