One of the most famous books about growing up and facing your awkward years amidst a revolutionary decade will be hitting the screens. Are You There, God? It’s Margaret has been a prolific pre-teen piece of literature and has been adapted into a feature care of a filmmaker with another “confused adolescence” story under her belt, Kelly Fremon Craig, who has explored more contemporary themes with The Edge of Seventeen starring the wonderful Hailee Steinfeld.
Here, we get newcomer Abby Ryder Fortson, taking the unenviable task of displaying young vulnerability in an ever-changing world. She is surrounded by a cast of notable award-nominated and winning actresses, Rachel McAdams and Kathy Bates.
The official synopsis from Lionsgate reads: For over fifty years, Judy Blume’s classic and groundbreaking novel Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. has impacted generations with its timeless coming of age story, insightful humor, and candid exploration of life’s biggest questions. In Lionsgate’s big-screen adaptation, 11-year-old Margaret (Abby Ryder Fortson) is uprooted from her life in New York City for the suburbs of New Jersey, going through the messy and tumultuous throes of puberty with new friends in a new school. She relies on her mother, Barbara (Rachel McAdams), who is also struggling to adjust to life outside the big city, and her adoring grandmother, Sylvia (Kathy Bates), who isn’t happy they moved away and likes to remind them every chance she gets. The film also stars Benny Safdie (Licorice Pizza, Good Time) and is written for the screen and directed by Kelly Fremon Craig (The Edge of Seventeen), based on the book by Judy Blume, and produced by Gracie Films’ Academy Award® winner James L. Brooks (Best Picture, 1983 – Terms of Endearment), alongside Julie Ansell, Richard Sakai, Kelly Fremon Craig, Judy Blume, Amy Lorraine Brooks, Aldric La’auli Porter, and executive produced by Jonathan McCoy.
James L. Brooks is a producer famous for comedies about the human condition with other credits like As Good As It Gets and Broadcast News, and, of course The Simpsons, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and many others. He doesn’t attach his name to a movie very often, but this is his second go-round with Fremon-Craig,m among me think this Judy Blume adaptation might be something very special indeed.
Are You There, God? It’s Margaret is set to hit theaters on April 28.