Blonde Mamba, the next-gen production house led by Amelia Baker and Mackenzie Munro, is partnering with Kari Skogland’s Mad Rabbit banner to develop “An Innocent Fashion,” an adaptation of R.J. Hernández’s debut novel.
Skogland, who was Emmy nominated and won a BAFTA for directing “The Handmaid’s Tale” and is now directing Marvel Studios’ “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” for Disney Plus, optioned the novel, and is attached as showrunner and executive producer on the project. Baker and Munro are producing.
Billed as a younger, lighter and more intersectional “The Devil Wears Prada” meets Brett Easton Ellis’ “Glamorama,” “An Innocent Fashion” follows the coming of age of Elián San Jamar – a sexually fluid Cuban-American from a working-class background in Corpus Christi, Texas. Changing his name to Ethan St. James, Elián graduates Yale and heads to New York City – where he confronts the reality of the millennial fairytale through a cut-throat internship at a prestigious fashion title. The biting truth of his ennui and the reality of the limitations his background places on him catch up to Ethan as he navigates the fashion world in the “Age of Woke.”
Hernández has been hailed as “a diamond-sharp satirist and a bracingly fresh chronicler of the heartbreak of trying to grow up” by Kirkus Reviews, and the Washington Post described the novel as a “portrait of postgraduate millennial dishevelment [which] rings true.”
OUT Magazine described the novel as “a haunting exploration of personal style, class divisions, and mental health saturated in the sensual imagery of New York’s ritziest nightclubs and unabashed personal vanity.”
Baker and Munro said in a statement: “Hernandez’s book is an original and compelling exploration of the American dream through a millennial lens – tackling the realities of privilege and class with biting humor and irresistible flair. We’re thrilled to be working on this adaptation together with Kari at the helm.”
Skogland added: “We are very excited to bring Hernández’s timely story to the screen in collaboration with Amelia and Mackenzie who provide a fresh vision as voices of a new generation.”
Blonde Mamba, which aims to produce projects that resonate with a Gen Z audience, has developed content for platforms such as Snapchat Discover and Facebook Watch. Recently announced projects include feature film “The Art of Love,” an adaptation of Betsy Franco’s novel produced with Nic Sheff (“Beautiful Boy,” “13 Reasons Why”), and executive produced by Skogland, and “Fangirl,” an original comedy developed with and executive produced by Jen Welter – the first female coach in the NFL.
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