Warner Bros. has been looking for the next Hunger Games for over a decade. The young adult series, based on the novels by Suzanne Collins, debuted in 2012 from Lionsgate, with its sequels hitting theaters in 2013, 2014, and 2015. While this was a nice replacement for Warner Bros.’ own Harry Potter franchise, it was darker and sparked interest for anyone looking for young adult dystopian thrillers. However, almost nothing that came out since then has scratched that same itch.
The Divergent series came close, with movies coming out in 2014, 2015, and 2016, by Summit Entertainment. However, the Divergent series ended before finishing its story. Meanwhile, Fox released the Maze Runner series, with movies coming out in 2014, 2015, and 2018. This means that, after Warner Bros. finished up its Harry Potter series in 2011, three rival studios adapted some of the most popular young adult novels into franchises, and Warner did nothing.
This week, Warner Bros. finally took a step in the direction of luring a young adult dystopian audience by acquiring the rights to the best-selling book series Shatter Me. It has been a decade since the original Hunger Games movies ended, and while Warner Bros. didn’t jump into the fire when the dystopian craze was at its highest in the 2010s, it might have waited just long enough for it to become popular again.
Why Shatter Me Is The Perfect Hunger Games Replacement
The first Shatter Me novel by Tahereh Mafi was released in 2011, and it has five sequels. There are also five ebook novellas (the third book didn’t have one) that go along with them from different characters’ points of view. This gives Warner Bros. plenty of material to bring a movie to life, and possibly even kickstart a cinematic franchise. Shatter Me is a dystopian romantic thriller narrated by Juliette Ferrars, a 17-year-old girl with a lethal touch. This puts her around the same age range as Katniss (Hunger Games) and Tris (Divergent).
The novel came out the year after The Hunger Games novels ended their trilogy, and it keeps the main themes and plot lines intact. There is a dystopian landscape with a totalitarian regime in control. Instead of Panem, this is called The Reestablishment, which took control after an environmental collapse. There is also a love triangle, which movies like The Hunger Games and Divergent thrived on. Here it is with Juliette, Adam Kent, a soldier Juliette knew in childhood, and Aaron Warner, the morally gray Chief Regent of Sector 45.
The book series has sold over 15 million copies worldwide, and it has a large fanbase. A movie could earn the books an even bigger audience while bringing their readers into theaters to see the big screen adaptation. It also helps that this is a BookTok title that was rediscovered (via Variety), meaning even though the first story is 15 years old, it is fresh again.
Everything We Know About The Shatter Me Movie
The news that Warner Bros. had acquired Shatter Me to adapt into a movie came on June 16, and the deal was for the entire book series. This is perfect timing, since this year is the first book’s 15th anniversary. Temple Hill’s Wyck Godfrey and Marty Bowen are producing after also working on the Twilight and Maze Runner franchises. Author Tahereh Mafi is also on board as an executive producer, which is great news for the book’s readers since she is likely to have some say in the script.
There is no word on a cast, director, or screenwriter, since the news about the acquisition just broke. However, Mafi did say that Warner Bros. has been a great partner so far, which means they have been working on the details behind the scenes. This news also comes while Mafi has been working on a new spin-off series titled Shatter Me: The New Republic, which is set 10 years after the main saga ended. Watch Me topped the New York Times bestseller list, Release Me arrived in April of this year, and Escape Me goes on sale in September.
This has also caused excitement in the fan community. Several Reddit threads have already been started with predictions about who will be cast, and some are saying it might end up impossible unless they cast unknowns for the roles. However, at the same time, there are many book Redditors who are not excited at all, and the responses have ranged from excitement to pure terror that the movie will ruin the books. Regardless, it seems Warner Bros. has found its own Hunger Games, and with author Tahereh Mafi involved, there is hope that Shatter Me remains loyal to the story.