I didn’t know my being happy would piss so many people off. Did I not warn you? People hate happy women.
—The Idea Of You (The Movie)
The movie trailer for the adaptation of Robinne Lee‘s steamy read ☛THE IDEA OF YOU dropped yesterday. And the “tumultuous rock star romance with an age gap” streams on Prime Video on May 2nd. Confession: I didn’t know that The Idea Of You was “the sleeper hit of the pandemic,” especially since I was swooning over this sexy love story back in June of 2017, long before Tik Tok was a thing and certainly before Book Tok discovered it and allegedly made it so much of a hit, we now have the Oscar-winning actress Anne Hathaway starring as the lead. As one who is not only a working mother, but whose last long-term relationship was with someone nine years my junior, I was hooked. Finally! I was reading about a single mother with a career and, wait for it, sex appeal AND desires. “It was supposed to be a story about a woman approaching 40 and reclaiming her sexuality and rediscovering herself…,” the author told Vogue in 2020. “…just at the point that society traditionally writes women off as desirable and viable and whole.” Listen, every mother ain’t matronly. Dare I say, most aren’t.
I’ve Been Posting About The Idea Of You Since June 2017. Tuh.
View this post on Instagram
View this post on Instagram
So the movie is not exactly like the book. I mean when is it ever? 🤷🏾♀️ I’ve been studying adaptations for lessons on how to convert my own novel into a limited-series screenplay and the theory/rule is that there’s no obligation to maintain the original story. Readers hate that. I know. Adaptations are actually an extension of the book. That said, and um, understood, here are some key changes I’ve read about for those who loved The Idea Of You, the novel:
- Hayes Campbell, the love interest, is older in the movie. In the book, the lead singer of the boy band August Moon is 20-years-old. In the streamer, he’s 24.
- Solène Marchand is a year older. In the novel, the hot mom and prestigious gallery owner is 39. In the streamer she’s 40.
- Solène’s daughter is younger in the book. In the movie, she’s 15. In the book, she’s 12.
- Sol and Hayes meet at Coachella. In the novel, they meet at an August Moon concert.
Full transparency, I haven’t seen the movie. So the aforementioned changes are the only major differences I’ve been able to verify. Oh, and there are a slew of producers for this iteration, most notably for me is Gabrielle Union’s production company, I’ll Have Another. Remember, the age-defying actress produced and starred in the adaptation of Tia Williams’ ☛THE PERFECT FIND. No shade. No tea. But, the trailer alone for The Idea Of You looks more expensive than the entire production of The Perfect Find. I’ll be watching. Watch party anyone?
The Idea Of You Synopsis From St. Martin’s Griffin/MacMillan:
Solène Marchand, the thirty-nine-year-old owner of an art gallery in Los Angeles, is reluctant to take her daughter, Isabelle, to meet her favorite boy band. But since her divorce, she’s more eager than ever to be close to Isabelle. The last thing Solène expects is to make a connection with one of the members of the world-famous August Moon. But Hayes Campbell is clever, winning, confident, and posh, and the attraction is immediate. That he is all of twenty years old further complicates things.
What begins as a series of clandestine trysts quickly evolves into a passionate and genuine relationship. It is a journey that spans continents as Solène and Hayes navigate each other’s worlds: from stadium tours to international art fairs to secluded hideaways in Paris and Miami. For Solène, it is a reclaiming of self, as well as a rediscovery of happiness and love. When Solène and Hayes’ romance becomes a viral sensation, and both she and her daughter become the target of rabid fans and an insatiable media, Solène must face how her romantic life has impacted the lives of those she cares about most.
