Conker Pictures (part of Banijay UK) has won the rights to the upcoming debut novel by Eloise Rodger – Death’s A Bitch.
Conker Pictures, established in 2023 by ex-BBC Drama Commissioner Tommy Bulfin and ex-Apple TV commissioner Kim Varvell, will now adapt the novel into a TV series with a view to taking it to both the UK and international markets.
Tommy Bulfin and Kim Varvell, Joint CEOs of Conker Pictures, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to have secured the rights to Eloise’s first novel after a fiercely competitive process. It’s a truly outstanding debut novel; bold, clever, funny and a story which deals with hugely important coming-of-age themes in a way that is both incredibly compelling and emotionally satisfying. Eloise is a total star and an exceptional talent; we are beyond excited to work with her in bringing her amazing book to the screen.”
Eloise Rodger, added: “I am completely delighted that Death’s A Bitch has found such perfect homes: with Louisa Joyner and Jordan Pavlin, and the wonderful teams at Faber and Knopf. I know the screen adaptation is in equally brilliant hands at Conker Pictures, with Kim Varvell and Tommy Bulfin. It is an absolute dream to see the story I’ve been writing since I was sixteen come to life, and I really couldn’t feel any luckier or more honoured. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to my literary agent Eleanor Birne, and film and TV agent, Emily Hayward Whitlock, who have guided me every step of the way and championed the book from its first chapters! I hope that Death’s A Bitch might contribute to our conversations around mental health and growing up, and in some small way, be a source of light.”
Aggie had secretly been hoping they would take her sister away for a while. Marcie has been ‘technically hospitalisable’ for nearly a year. So thin that she was starting to lose her hair. Her parents and Aggie are out of their depth. But the thing with waitlists is that they are so mind-numbingly endless, it feels safe to think Jesus Christ, would they ever hurry up?
And then it happens, on a totally unassuming Tuesday, and instead Aggie’s first thought is get your hands off my sister. When it comes to Marcie, euphemisms about love feel like understatements. Aggie needs her home, like crows have wings, like planets have moons. Like trees belong in the ground. There’s nothing she wouldn’t do.
So when Death: red-lipped, feline-eyed and chignoned-to-perfection, appears in Aggie’s bedroom with an offer of a job – a job that means Marcie can skip their next appointment – Aggie doesn’t have much of a choice. Her little sister. Aggie wouldn’t just kill for her. She’d do something worse. And thanks to Death’s proposition… She will.
Backed by Banijay Entertainment’s Scripted Fund, and scouted by Hannah Griffiths, Head of Adaptations for Banijay UK, the project “reflects the company’s commitment to developing standout stories and supporting bold ideas across its global network.”
The deal was negotiated by Emily Hayward Whitlock at The Artists Partnership.
Jon Creamer
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