Madelaine Petsch and Gavin Casalegno are set to headline Chasing Red, the film adaptation of Isabelle Ronin’s massively popular Wattpad romance, marking another major page-to-screen project from the digital storytelling platform.
The film is being helmed by Mackenzie Munro, who previously directed the 2024 Wattpad-backed rom-com Boot Camp as well as Salvation (2021). The screenplay comes from Lauren Schacher. The project is being produced by Greg Silverman and Grant Torre for Stampede Ventures, alongside Webtoon Productions’ David Madden and Jason Goldberg.
Petsch steps into the role of Veronica, a high-achieving student trying hard to avoid becoming the latest romantic target of campus charmer Caleb, played by Casalegno. Their unexpected meeting sets off a magnetic pull that neither wants to acknowledge. With Veronica trying to escape a difficult past and finding herself with nowhere else to turn, she reluctantly moves into Caleb’s home — a decision that deepens their connection while unearthing long-hidden truths. Promoted as a “compelling slow-burn of love and betrayal”, the story has earned a massive following online.
The source material stands as Wattpad’s second most-read English-language story, boasting 261 million reads. Beyond its original form, the novel has been reimagined as a Webtoon graphic series with more than 24 million views, and it has been published in print by Sourcebooks as well as in graphic novel form through Webtoon Unscrolled. Wattpad previously found major success with Anna Todd’s After series, which went on to spawn a five-film franchise that earned $168 million worldwide.
Petsch, widely recognised for her portrayal of Cheryl Blossom on Riverdale, recently starred in and produced the Amazon rom-com Maintenance Required. She also appears in Lionsgate’s rebooted The Strangers trilogy, with The Strangers: Chapter 3 arriving next year, and has wrapped production on Killer Films’ Pretty Babies.
Casalegno continues to rise in popularity for his performance as Jeremiah Fisher on Prime Video’s hit YA series The Summer I Turned Pretty. Up next, he stars alongside Kathryn Newton and Lana Condor in Amazon MGM’s thriller The Devil’s Mouth, directed by Jeff Wadlow.