| Cruel Intentions | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Drama |
| Based on | Cruel Intentions by Roger Kumble Les Liaisons dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos |
| Written by |
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| Directed by | Roger Kumble |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Ed Shearmur |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 1 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Editors |
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| Camera setup | Single-camera |
| Running time | 45 minutes |
| Production companies | |
| Related | |
| Cruel Intentions | |
Cruel Intentions is an unaired television pilot produced by Original Film and Sony Pictures Television for NBC. Part of the franchise of the same name, the pilot serves as a direct sequel to the 1999 film by Roger Kumble, which is based on the 1782 French novel Les Liaisons dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos.
The Cruel Intentions pilot was expected to debut in 2016, but NBC opted not to buy the series. It was directed and co-written by Kumble, with Neal H. Moritz, who produced the original film and sequels, serving as executive producers. It stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, reprising her role of Kathryn Merteuil from the film.[1][2]
The pilot was the second attempt to adapt the franchise as a television series after the 1999 Fox series that was canceled during filming and later retooled as the 2000 direct-to-video prequel film Cruel Intentions 2. A third project, also titled Cruel Intentions, was given a series order at Amazon Prime Video and premiered in November 2024, but was canceled after one season.
The pilot is set seventeen years after the events of the film and sees Bash Casey, son of Sebastian Valmont and Annette Hargrove, discover his late father's journal. Upon discovering this he is thrown into a world of lies, sex and power. The potential series included the character of Kathryn Merteuil, Bash's step-aunt, who would try to gain power of Valmont International.
The series pilot, a direct sequel to the 1999 film Cruel Intentions, was co-written by the film's writer-director Roger Kumble and Lindsey Rosin and Jordan Ross, who created Cruel Intentions: The '90s Musical. Kumble directed the pilot, which he executive produced with the film's producer Neal H. Moritz.[11][12]
In February 2016, producers were in talks with Gellar to reprise her role of Kathryn Merteuil from the film.[13] That month, Taylor John Smith and Samantha Logan were both cast, with Smith playing the male lead role of Bash Casey.[14] Gellar reached a deal with producers to join the show.[15]
Several months later, on October 31, NBC passed on the project, but Sony Pictures Television was shopping the pilot with other networks.[16][17] During an interview in 2022, Gellar revealed that she was grateful that the series was not picked up by NBC, as she felt that a Cruel Intentions series was more suited for a streaming service and did not work as a network show.[18]
In 2021, a third adaptation of the franchise into a television series was announced by Amazon Studios.[19] The series premiered in November 2024 on Amazon Prime Video but was canceled after one season.[20]
