In its 240 years, Pierre Choderlos de Laclos’ once scandalous (and at one point, banned) 1782 novel has been adapted around 30 times for various stage, radio and screen productions across five continents. Yet for many, Roger Kumble’s has remained one of its most popular retellings. The 1999 movie spin on a pair of lovers-turned-rivals who destroy each other through their cruel manipulations of the unsuspecting French aristocracy reimagines the unscrupulous members of the French nobility into two competitive (and sexually enamored) teenage step-siblings, Kathryn ( ) and Sebastian ( ).
As part of a jealousy-driven bet that begins with ruining their new classmate Cecile ( ), the duo find the stakes of their contest flamed by the arrival of the disarmingly kind and principled Annette ( ), the daughter of their affluent Upper East Side high school’s headmaster. The box-office hit not only bolstered the careers of stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe and Reese Witherspoon, but reinforced that the seductive and vicious nature of reputation, power and social politics could pragmatically play out in the teen drama space. With its release, the film would join the likes of , and in an era of clever and definitive modern adaptations, helping to usher in a provocative chapter of late-‘90s to mid-2000s young adult-led dramas, including , and .
Now, decades later, comes , which starts streaming on Thursday. When signing on for the series, Sara Goodman and Phoebe Fisher, the c.
