There hasn’t been much news until recently, and what little has been released doesn’t provide much clarification, following the early 2021 announcement that A Court of Thorns and Roses would be adapted for television by Hulu.
Author Sarah J. Maas announced on Instagram on March 26, 2021, that a TV adaptation of Court of Thorns and Roses was in the works. Millions of copies of the ACOTAR series have been sold worldwide, and its ardent fan community has produced fanfiction, fan art, and other media.
It was hardly surprising that Hulu acquired the rights to A Court of Thorns and Roses, given how many streaming services were vying for the next great fantasy smash. Nevertheless, there haven’t been many updates on the Court of Thorns and Roses show since then.
Ron Moore, the man behind Outlander, assisted Maas in developing the pilot, which she was reportedly working on for a few hours each day. Although it was unsubstantiated, there were speculations early this year that the writing team had written the screenplays for the first four episodes.
A Court of Thorns and Roses has a lot of potential, so, strangely, it’s taking so long to get started. However, some contradicting stories have surfaced recently, and they don’t seem good for the Hulu ACOTAR series.
Why The Court Of Thorns And Roses Show Has Been So Delayed?
The protracted pre-production of A Court of Thorns and Roses is the result of several factors. To begin with, the series was initially verified during the height of the coronavirus outbreak. While pre-production work, especially scripting, can be done from a distance, having the entire writers’ room together makes things much easier.
Blocks, convoluted story points, and other issues can be resolved in person more rapidly than over Zoom or email. But author Sarah J. Maas could also be the cause behind the protracted creation of the A Court of Thorns and Roses adaption.
It can be difficult to shift from being the leader of a writers’ room full of brilliant individuals with their ideas to being the lone author of a book series. There are countless tales in Hollywood of writers and those who adapt their works fighting. It makes sense—when someone devotes so much effort and time to creating anything, they naturally feel a sense of ownership with the characters and tales.
If Maas’ transition to television isn’t going as well as planned, it wouldn’t be shocking if A Court of Thorns and Roses is taking so long to finish. That may be the cause of the recent discrepancies in reports regarding the progress of A Court of Thorns and Roses.
TVLine was the first to disclose that Hulu has fully abandoned the project. Then Variety denied that story, saying that it “is believed to no longer be in active development”—which, in TV development parlance, might as well mean abandoned, at least for the time being. Instead of saying it has been scrapped, Variety said.
Audiences have come to enjoy several critically praised original shows that Hulu has produced, especially in the last few years. They’ve covered a wide range of genres, including horror, sci-fi, and even ridiculous slice-of-life comedies and criminal dramas.
That being said, fantasy is one area that Hulu has never ventured into. Another reason the streamer is taking its time with the adaptation could be that A Court of Thorns and Roses will be Hulu’s first venture into the fantasy TV genre.