New 'Pride & Prejudice' Remake Finally Being Undertaken

C'mon everyone, let's say it together: It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. For decades, said single man in possession of that fortune and wife-to-be has been defined by one of two versions: The 1995 Colin Firth-Jennifer Ehle BBC miniseries and the 2005 Matthew Macfayden-Keira Knightly big screen version. However, as noted in our article on the forthcoming The Other Bennet Sister, these versions are 30 and 20 years old, respectively, come 2025. Obviously, it is time for a new generation-defining remake, much like Greta Gerwig did with Little Women. And who should take up the call but... Netflix.

If you just felt the hairs on the back of your neck stand up on end, like someone just pulled a Halloween prank, you're not alone. Netflix's last attempt at Jane Austen, Persuasion (arguably Austen's finest novel), was an absolute disaster. No one involved seemed to understand the material they were working with, and the brass behind it had no idea what to do with the result, even if they had understood why it was bad and should feel bad.

The good news is that this Pride & Prejudice will not hail from Ronald Bass (Rain Man), who was credited with the Persuasion screenplay, poor man. Instead, it will come from Dolly Alderton, the best-selling author whose adaptation of her own novel, Everything I Know About Love, was distressingly lost on Peacock. (I believe it's still in there somewhere! But don't quote me.) Surely, a middle-class girl born in the U.K. in the mid-1980s would understand the material far better.

Netflix, of course, has not responded for comment, nor has it confirmed the story, but multiple well-sourced outlets have confirmed that the project is in development off the record. As British outfit Broadcast UK put it, "The creative is understood to have written scripts for the project, which is still in development with the streaming giant and not as-yet close to a greenlight." 

And that's where the nerves come in. Is Netflix taking its time with this because it saw how badly the Persuasion remake did, and they want to get it right this time? Or is Netflix "not close to a greenlight" because upon being handed a script that would make every true Jane Austen swoon, they demanded more sex and teen-speak?

Moreover, and this is the Very Important bit! Is Netflix going to give Pride & Prejudice a theatrical release? Persuasion got the streaming service's customary "limited release for a few days" treatment, which did poorly because the movie was terrible. Currently, Netflix is trying not to do theatrical releases, something that is a rumored point of contention with Gerwig, who wants her currently-in-production Narnia franchise to get the Big Blockbuster treatment and is a significant hurdle in acquiring Emerald Fennel's Wuthering Heights, which the streaming service reportedly is bidding well over what everyone else currently offered the controversial film.

We'll keep a close eye on this project, with more news as events warrant.