A gay adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, set on Fire Island, is coming. Yes, you read that correctly
Still from Pride and Prejudice (YouTube)
Queer people have waited more than 200 years, but their moment has finally come: a gay adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic novel Pride and Prejudice is in the works.
Trip is a modern-day romantic comedy set on New York’s Fire Island and is written by comedian and actor Joel Kim Booster. It follows two best friends who set out on a week-long summer vacation and is in development for short-form streaming platform Quibi, Deadline reports.
“For the last couple of years I’ve been threatening to pitch a gay Pride and Prejudice adaptation that takes place entirely on Fire Island and I finally found a platform foolish enough to do it!!” Booster tweeted.
“This is my version of Sandler telling Netflix he has to film his next movie on the Amalfi Coast or some s**t. Only I’m making all my friends wear speedos on Long Island in April,” he joked.
The actor also joked that his Quibi show is simply laying the groundwork for his “real passion project” – an adaptation of Austen’s Persuasion, set on an Atlantic Cruise.
Joel Kim Booster also stars in new NBC sitcom Sunnyside.
Booster moved to New York in 2014 to pursue a career in comedy and since then has written for shows such as Billy on the Street, Big Mouth and The Other Two.
He has starred in Viper Club as well as Hulu’s Shrill, and has recently been cast in NBC sitcom Sunnyside. Created by Kal Penn and Matt Murray, it is set to debut on NBC tonight (September 26). It follows Garrett Modi, a former New York City councillor, who decides to help immigrants gain citizenship.
For the last couple of years I’ve been threatening to pitch a gay Pride and Prejudice adaptation that takes place entirely on Fire Island and I finally found a platform foolish enough to do it!
This is not the first queer version of Pride and Prejudice. 2017 feature film Before The Fall offered a modern retelling of Austen’s classic story involving two men falling in love in Virginia.
Pride and Prejudice author Jane Austen recorded sleeping in the same bed as other women.
Pride and Prejudice was first published in 1813 and has gone on to become a classic of English literature. The original novel follows Elizabeth Bennet as she falls slowly in love with Mr Darcy.
Needless to say, the original novel did not feature any gay love stories – but Austen herself may not have been as straight-laced as her characters were.
In 2017, Jane Austen biographer Lucy Worsley said that the writer “almost certainly” never had sex with a man in her lifetime. However, Austen recorded having slept in the same bed as female friends.
