From Hollywood to Home: Black Voices in Entertainment
- Centers on Yasmen and Josiah Wade, a married couple fractured by devastating losses, exploring grief, healing and a possible second chance.
- Kennedy Ryan co-wrote the pilot with Malcolm D. Lee, who will direct and executive produce; known for The Best Man and Girls Trip.
- Sisters Attica Locke and Tembi Locke serve as showrunners, writers and executive producers, joined by producers John Legend and Debra Martin Chase.
Peacock is bringing Kennedy Ryan’s bestselling romance Before I Let Go to television, assembling an impressive creative team that includes Malcolm D. Lee and acclaimed sisters Attica Locke and Tembi Locke. Universal Global Television and Universal Television have announced a series order for the adaptation of Ryan’s beloved novel, the first book in her popular Skyland series.
And for fans of emotionally rich Black love stories, this one already has plenty to get excited about.
The Story Behind Before I Let Go
Before I Let Go centers on Yasmen and Josiah Wade, a once deeply connected married couple whose relationship crumbles after they endure devastating losses. Divorce and shared custody follow, but moving on proves more complicated than either expected.
As Yasmen begins rebuilding her life and rediscovering joy, her continued proximity to Josiah keeps old feelings—and old wounds—very much alive. The former couple must eventually confront a difficult question: Is their love story truly over, or could a second chance lead them back to each other?
Kennedy Ryan and Malcolm D. Lee created the television series and co-wrote the pilot, with Lee also set to direct and executive produce. Lee, the filmmaker behind The Best Man franchise, Girls Trip and Space Jam: A New Legacy, said he was immediately drawn into Ryan’s world.
Photo Credit: David Lee. The acclaimed filmmaker behind THE BEST MAN franchise, GIRLS TRIP, SPACE JAM: A NEW LEGACY and Peacock’s STRUNG serves as creator, co-writer, director and executive producer
“From the time I read Kennedy Ryan’s ‘Skyland’ series, I was fully engaged in the lives of these characters and invested in their outcomes,” Lee said. “Adapting the pilot with her has been an absolute treasure to experience and we plan on bringing all the feels to her fans and her new TV family. That promise of “all the feels” seems especially fitting for a story built around love, grief, family, healing and the complicated possibility of finding your way back to someone you once thought you had lost.
Attica and Tembi Locke Return to Stories of Love, Family and Healing
Adding even more reason for anticipation, Attica Locke and Tembi Locke will serve as showrunners, writers and executive producers. The sisters previously co-created and executive produced Netflix’s From Scratch, the emotionally charged limited series that became a global hit and reached Netflix’s Global Top 10 in 84 countries. Attica Locke’s television credits also include When They See Us, Empire and the Emmy-nominated Little Fires Everywhere. Tembi Locke is the New York Times bestselling author of From Scratch: A Memoir of Love, Sicily, and Finding Home, which inspired the Netflix series.
“We could not be more thrilled to bring Kennedy Ryan’s ‘Skyland’ series to life,” Attica and Tembi Locke said. “We love and feel uniquely suited to bring books about love, family and healing to screen.”
Kennedy Ryan Brings Her Beloved “Skyland” World to Television
Ryan, a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, has built a devoted readership through romances that explore relationships while also making room for grief, family, ambition, trauma and healing. An NAACP Image Award nominee and Essence and Ebony Power 100 honoree, Ryan also became the first Black author to win the Audie Award for Romance. For the author, seeing Skyland move from the page to the screen represents a milestone years in the making.
“Getting the chance to bring the ‘Skyland’ series to life onscreen is a dream come true,” Ryan said. “These characters have meant so much to so many readers, and none of this would be possible without the people who have supported my work for years.”
The Series Has Enlisted A Powerhouse Producing Team
The powerhouse producing team also includes Dominique Telson, Mike Jackson and John Legend through Get Lifted Film Co., and Debra Martin Chase through Martin Chase Productions. Legend and Jackson praised Ryan’s novel as “a deeply moving, honest and beautifully layered story about love, loss, family and the possibility of finding your way back to one another.”
With Ryan helping adapt her own characters, Lee behind the camera and Attica and Tembi Locke guiding the series, Before I Let Go arrives at Peacock with a creative team that understands the importance of giving Black love stories room to be romantic, messy, mature, painful and hopeful all at once. And if the television adaptation captures the emotional pull that made Ryan’s novel so beloved, viewers may need to get ready for what will surely be an emotional roller coaster. Malcolm D. Lee has already promised us “all the feels.”
Related stories: Director Malcolm D. Lee Reflects On The Best Man 20 Years Later, Zoe Saldana To Star un Netflix Limited Series Based on Tembi Lockes Best Selling Memoir, Universal Pictures Enters First Look Deal With Malcolm D. Lee & His Blackmailed Productions
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