Expanding its growing catalogue of romance-driven content, Netflix has greenlit a series adaptation of Carley Fortune’s bestselling novel This Summer Will Be Different, envisioning it as a long-running love story in the vein of Bridgerton.
The project has received a 10-episode order from Netflix Canada, with Sphere Media producing. The studio previously collaborated with the platform on Wayward, a thriller created by Mae Martin that performed strongly on the global charts, even topping rankings in 35 countries.
Set against the picturesque backdrop of Prince Edward Island, the series is described as a “simmering, sun-soaked romance set across multiple summers". The story follows Lucy, a woman in her twenties, as she navigates adulthood and finds herself drawn to Felix – her best friend’s brother – "the one person she was never supposed to fall for". Each summer reunion deepens their connection, unfolding across repeated visits to a beach house on the island.
Production will take place on Prince Edward Island as well as in Toronto. The coastal setting famously served as inspiration for Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery, adding a layer of literary nostalgia to the adaptation.
The series will be developed by Dane Clark and Linsey Stewart, who also serve as showrunners and executive producers alongside Fortune, Jennifer Kawaja and Elise Cousineau.
Fortune reflected on her personal connection to the setting, saying, “I fell in love with Prince Edward Island first in the pages of LM Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables and again when I visited with my best friend in my early twenties.” She added that those formative experiences shaped the novel’s emotional core: “That vacation, the beauty of the island, the warmth of its people, and the friendships that sustain us are the foundation of This Summer Will Be Different… I’m thrilled to bring this sweeping love story to the screen with Netflix and to transport audiences to the glittering shores and windswept beaches of PEI.”
The show joins Netflix’s expanding Canadian slate, which includes titles such as North of North, Wayward, Who Killed the Montreal Expos?, an untitled Newfoundland project, and The Granville Girls. While the series is set for a global release, casting details and production timelines are yet to be revealed.
