FX has ordered a limited series for Fleishman Is in Trouble, based on the novel by Taffy Brodesser-Akner. There will be nine episodes and Brodesser-Akner will write and executive produce.
Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly and Susannah Grant are executive producers, too.
“Fleishman Is in Trouble offers an unsparing, modern take on life, love and commitment in Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s terrific debut novel and we are thrilled that she is adapting it as a limited series for FX,” said Gina Balian, president, original programming, FX. “Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly and Susannah Grant join Taffy on the creative team that will work with ABC Signature to capture the energy and edge of this story.”
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ABC Signature will produce the series and it will stream on FX on Hulu.
The story is centered on recently separated 40-something Toby Fleishman, who dives into app-based dating with the kind of success he never had dating in his youth. But just at the start of his first summer of sexual freedom, his ex-wife, Rachel, disappears, leaving him with the kids and no hint of where she is or whether she will return. As he balances parenting, the return of old friends, a promotion at the hospital, and all the eligible women that Manhattan has to offer, he realizes he'll never be able to figure out what happened to Rachel until he can take a more honest look at what happened to their marriage in the first place.
“Lisa, Tracy and I fell in love with Taffy’s searing novel and were ecstatic she chose us and our partners at FX as her home,” said Jonnie Davis, president, ABC Signature. “Along with Sarah, Carl and Susannah, we can’t wait for Taffy’s vision for the series to deliver equal water-cooler addiction that her book garnered upon debut.”
Brodesser-Akner is a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine, and has also written for GQ and ESPN The Magazine.
"I'm thrilled to be extending Fleishman's life onto the screen with such smart, thoughtful and courageous partners,” she said. “When I was writing this book, my aim was to resolve for myself the mystifying dynamics and politics of marriage and middle age. Writing the book didn't help much, so I'm hoping that making this show does the trick."
