Suchismita Ghosh
Netflix’s romantic series ‘Forever’ has begun filming in Los Angeles, California, with the production scheduled to conclude on July 30. The show is a reimagined adaptation of Judy Blume’s 1975 novel of the same name. Mara Brock Akil serves as the showrunner of the project. Lovie Simone and Michael Cooper Jr. lead the cast, which also includes Xosha Roquemore, Marvin Lawrence Winans III, Karen Pittman, Wood Harris, and Adriyan Rae.
The series revolves around two black teens named Keisha Clark (Simone) and Justin Edwards (Cooper Jr.), who explore romance and their identities through the awkward journey of being each other’s “firsts” in Los Angeles in the year 2018. Clark is a young confident, smart, and fiery track star with clear dreams for life after high school. Edwards, on the other hand, is a young man who is a nerd at heart disguised in an athlete’s body. He dreams of playing D1 basketball and achieving more than his successful parents. Love will lead him to who he truly is.
Mara also serves as an executive producer under the Story27 Productions banner and the project is part of a deal she signed with the streaming giant. The screenwriter is known for creating BET’s thriller drama ‘Being Mary Jane,’ starring Gabrielle Union, and UPN/The CW’s sitcom ‘Girlfriends,’ with Tracee Ellis Ross, Golden Brooks, and Persia White in the lead. Along with Mara and Blume, Erika Harrison, who previously produced the Primetime Emmy Award-winning ‘How to Get Away With Murder,’ and Susie Fitzgerald of Story27 serve as executive producers of the show.
Talking about the adaptation, Mara shared, “Judy Blume’s ability to capture the real emotions we experience during the various rites of passage of our youth influenced my life choices and writing voice. I’m honored to reimagine one of my favorite books, ‘Forever.’ I am thrilled to have the opportunity of a lifetime to partner with a childhood icon and bring this story to my Netflix home, where the idea of your first love being with you Forever is shared with the world through the lens of Black love.”
Simone is known for playing Davina Harrison in Starz’s crime drama series ‘Power Book III: Raising Kanan’ and Mary Simms in Apple TV+’s historical drama series ‘Manhunt.’ She had her breakthrough with her performance as Zora Greenleaf in the drama series ‘Greenleaf.’ Cooper Jr. portrayed Malik in Paramount+’s ‘On the Come Up’ and Carl in ‘The Inhabitant.’
‘Forever’ previously was adapted as a TV movie, directed by John Korty, for CBS in 1978. It starred Stephanie Zimbalist, Dean Butler, John Friedrich, Beth Raines, and Diana Scarwid in pivotal roles.
Los Angeles, the principal location, previously hosted the shooting of several well-known award-winning films. 2023’s mega-hit Oscar-nominated films such as Greta Gerwig’s ‘Barbie‘ and Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer‘ have significant portions where were shot in the city. Some of the other films to have been shot extensively in LA include Damien Chazelle’s ‘Babylon‘ and Gareth Edwards’ ‘The Creator.’
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