Muriel Sauzay and François Ivernel, two former top-level executives at French production company Pathé, won a bidding war to secure screen rights from publiser L'Iconoclaste for Jean-Baptiste Andréa's Veiller sur Elle (Watching Over Her), winner of the 2023 Prix Goncourt, France's most prestigious literary prize, Variety reported.
Watching Over Her is one of the best selling Goncourt winners in the prize's 121-year history, and has thus far been translated into 34 languages. It will soon be published in English by Atlantic Books. Sauzay's company Maremako and Ivernel's Montebello Productions will be developing the screen adaptation and are currently assembling a creative team.
Andrea said he was "thrilled at the prospect of seeing the characters from (his) novel come to life on screen, in the vivid colors and shadows of a past world that feels so contemporary."
Ivernel and Sauzay described Watching Over Her as "an inventive epic and a reflection of our contemporary obsessions, animated by highly romantic characters, rich plots with twists, and unforgettable scenes that predestine the book for screen adaptation."