Laika Secures Rights to Mandel's New Novel

Laika's live-action division has successfully acquired the rights to Emily St. John Mandel's anticipated novel, 'Exit Party.' The deal, reportedly valued in the low seven figures, also includes Emma Stone and Dave McCary's Fruit Tree as executive producers. This acquisition marks a significant step for Laika's three-year-old live-action arm, which is developing feature projects and now its first live-action TV endeavor under President Matt Levin.

The intellectual property generated considerable interest, with eight to ten studios and streamers initially participating in an auction. Mandel was reportedly drawn to Laika's passion and strategic offer, which valued her creative input. 'Exit Party' explores themes of duality, alternate realities, and fragmented timelines, centering on a disappearance at a Los Angeles party and a subsequent search for answers.

The novel itself is scheduled for release in September. While Mandel is adapting her own work, WandaVision's Jac Schaeffer is no longer attached as showrunner due to other commitments. Laika is actively seeking candidates for the showrunner position. The collaboration with Fruit Tree is a recent development, with both companies expressing enthusiasm for bringing Mandel's distinctive narrative to the screen.

Laika's live-action division, based in Los Angeles, has several other projects in development, including film adaptations of 'Atmosphere' and 'Audition.' The studio's commitment to character-driven, visually imaginative storytelling, as evidenced by 'Exit Party,' aligns with Mandel's own celebrated literary style, seen in previous works like 'Station Eleven' and 'Sea of Tranquility.'