Fresh off the success of the Netflix’s hit drama Bridgerton, Adjoa Andoh is set to executive produce an adaptation of Vanessa Riley’s novel Island Queen for television.
The novel, which is slated to be adapted by Bridgerton director and Emmy nominee Julie Anne Robinson, is based on the historical tale of Dorothy “Doll” Kirwan Thomas, an enslaved woman who bought her freedom and secured the freedom of many of her relatives. Thomas eventually would secure her legacy as an entrepreneur, becoming one of the richest women in the Caribbean.
“In Island Queen, Vanessa has beautifully reintegrated the extraordinary history and perspective of an empowered black woman, into the wider story of Caribbean slavery and the British Empire. Putting history back into history, this is a story whose time is now.” said Andoh said in a statement, as reported by Deadline. “I am so excited to be working alongside Julie Anne again at Longboat as we develop this project, bringing Vanessa’s vision and Dorothy’s astonishing true story to the screen.”
“Vanessa has crafted a groundbreaking and inspiring story that vividly depicts the remarkable life of Dorothy Thomas,” Robinson said. “We are so excited to be bringing it to the screen, and I could not be happier to have this opportunity to continue the collaboration with Adjoa that began on Bridgerton.”
Island Queen will be developed by Robinson’s production company, Longboat Pictures.
