Dear Debbie: You producer Gina Girolamo to adapt Freida McFadden’s thriller at Amazon MGM

Dear Debbie is being adapted for television, with producer Gina Girolamo attached to the project at Amazon MGM Studios, industry reports say. The Deadline story that broke the news on 11 September 2025 lists Girolamo as the lead producer and places the project at the development stage rather than in production.

The novel behind the show arrives in shops on 27 January 2026, and publisher listings describe a plot built around an advice columnist whose private life starts to break down. In the book, the columnist answers letters under the heading Dear Debbie while she helps women dealing with neglect and harm in their marriages. Over time, she faces job trouble, strange behavior from her teenage daughters, and growing doubts about her husband after she installs a tracking app.

Gina Girolamo is attached to lead the TV adaptation of Dear Debbie

Deadline places Gina Girolamo, who produced the show You for Netflix, at the center of the development effort and links the project to her producing banner. Girolamo has television credits on recent series and has worked on projects that mix suspense with serialized character drama such as Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin and 666 Park Avenue, which helps explain why she would be tapped for this kind of story.

The book Dear Debbie’s premise centers on an advice column and family strain

Publisher summaries and the author’s page outline a simple setup. The columnist gives practical answers to readers, and her home life shows cracks. The column name Dear Debbie appears as both a public brand and a private burden in the novel’s description.

Key plot hooks are the tracking app, a job loss, and the changing behavior of her daughters. Those beats create a clear throughline that television writers can follow or reshape.

If the series follows the book’s structure, Episode 1 could introduce the columnist at work, answering a reader who fears being ignored by her husband. By the end of that episode, the lead might find tracking data that points to a betrayal.

Later episodes could pair a single reader letter with a private reveal about the family in each hour, letting shorter conflicts coexist with a season-long mystery. That kind of scene plan would give viewers an immediate hook while building steady suspense.

What remains unannounced and important for the screen version?

At this stage, the project has no announced cast, director or production timeline. It is also not public whether the writers will expand side characters or keep the story tightly focused on the columnist and her household. A narrow focus would heighten the psychological pressure, while a broader cast would allow more subplots and procedural beats.

How does the timing fit the publishing schedule and studio plans?

Trending

With the book “Dear Debbie” set for a January 2026 release, the adaptation news arrives while the novel is still new. That timing lets the studio coordinate publishing and development plans if they choose to move faster. The novel will be available in early 2026, while the TV project will continue through development until the studio decides whether to order a full season.

×

Was this article helpful?

Thank You for feedback