EXCLUSIVE: Bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz’s YA fantasy novel The Rings & The Crown is getting a series adaptation for Disney+ from 20th Television, The Gotham Group and 3 Arts Entertainment, along with Disney Branded Television.
Written by veteran showrunners Aaron Harberts and Gretchen J. Berg (Our Kind of People), the series, now in development, is set in an Arthurian world in which magic exists. It centers on Princess Marie-Victoria, the heir to the mightiest empire in the world, who is being forced into a political marriage, and her dear friend Aelwyn Myrddyn, the bastard daughter of Merlin, who is being forced into service of the crown. The Annual London Season is just beginning, and as noble families from across the globe are gathering to flaunt their wealth and magic at lavish parties, behind the scenes, Marie-Victoria, Aelwyn, and others are making moves to secure political power, true love, and their futures.
“I am so, so, so excited to partner with Disney once more,” said de la Cruz, who wrote the bestselling The Isle of the Lost novel, the prequel to the Disney Channel blockbuster original movie Descendants, which has over a million copies in print. “The Ring and The Crown is one of my finest novels, it was inspired by my favorite book of all time, Tolstoy’s War and Peace as well as my favorite mythology of all time, the Arthurian legends. I cannot wait to see it brought to life by such a stellar team, studio and streaming service.”
Harberts and Berg executive produce with de la Cruz, The Gotham Group’s Ellen Goldsmith Vein, Jeremy Bell and DJ Goldberg; and 3 Arts’ Richard Abate.
“We are thrilled to be reunited with Charlie Andrews, Reena Singh, and the 20th team,” Berg and Harberts said. “Their vision, combined with The Gotham Group’s passion and expertise, provide the perfect ingredients to craft a romantic, action-packed, supernatural soap with seasons and seasons of stories. We could not be more excited to be a part of bringing this rich universe to life.”
The Ring & The Crown keeps Berg and Harberts in the Disney TV fold. They are coming off stints as executive producers on the 20th Television drama series for Fox Our Kind of People and as consultants for Disney Channel’s upcoming roller skating comedy series Saturdays. Longtime writing partners Berg and Harberts, whose credits include Pepper Dennis, a series they also created, Pushing Daisies, Reign, and Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist, are repped by Adventure Media’s Chris von Goetz and attorney Gretchen Rush.
The Ring And The Crown novel is published by Disney Publishing Worldwide which also is behind de la Cruz’s The Isle of the Lost franchise whose subsequent books, Return to the Isle of the Lost and Rise of the Isle of the Lost, were also bestsellers.
De la Cruz is also known for the Blue Bloods series (with three million copies in print), and the Witches of East End series. Her recent book releases include bestsellers The Queen’s Assassin and the Alex & Eliza series, as well as the graphic novel Gotham High and The Birthday Girl. In 2020, Disney Publishing Worldwide and Melissa de la Cruz launched Melissa de la Cruz Studio, a new collaboration which seeks out debut and established authors to create original content. Anne of Greenville by Mariko Tamaki will launch October 2022. De la Cruz is repped by Abate at 3 Arts and Goldsmith Vein at the Gotham Group.