Summit Entertainment has acquired worldwide rights to the much-popularized relationship book franchise Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus written by Dr. John Gray. The original book was first published by Harper Collins in 1992. The intention is to develop the self-help books into both a television series and a film franchise which will be produced by Gail Berman and Lloyd Braun.
It will be interesting to see whether these films and the television series are able to carry the popularity of the books onto the screen in a fictionalized world. Erik Feig, Summit’s President of Production, seems confident of its success:
“‘Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus’ is not just the title of a book, or what we know will become an amazing film and TV franchise – it is a pop cultural mainstay and comically, sadly, romantically, all too often still true these many years after first being published. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work on a franchise whose name everyone knows and whose reality everyone lives!” (ComingSoon)
While admittedly it could revive the somewhat deflated romantic comedy genre, to have a chance at success it will need witty scripts that use humor to play with the stereotypical gender differences that most audiences could identify. But even with this element it is unlikely that both the film and the television series will successfully co-exist. So unless Summit is covering their bases by giving this franchise a chance in two different mediums, then the only alternative is for the television series to pick up once the films have been completed. However that too could be problematic should the actors from the film not continue their role in the television series.
It could be some time before we see anything, but win or lose, Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus will be a future franchise to watch out for.
What do you think of Summit developing Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus into both a film and television franchise?