Melissa Benoist In Talks To Star In ‘Girls On the Bus’ HBO Max Series From Berlanti Productions

 

Melissa Benoist is in negotiations to headline ‘The Girls on the Bus,’ which just received a straight-to-series order at HBO Max, we have learned. Benoist also is expected to serve as a producer on the drama series

Melissa Benoist In Talks To Star In ‘Girls On the Bus’ HBO Max Series From Berlanti Productions Coming off six seasons as the lead of Supergirl, Melissa Benoist is poised to reunite with Berlanti Productions on another series. Benoist is in negotiations to headline The Girls on the Bus, which just received a straight-to-series order at HBO Max, I have learned. Benoist also is expected to serve as a producer on the drama series, an adaptation of Amy Chozick’s bestselling book Chasing Hillary, from Julie Plec, Chozick, Berlanti Productions and Warner Bros TV. Reps for HBO Max and WBTV declined comment.

Talks with Benoist for Girls on the Bus have been going on a parallel track with negotiations for the project’s move from the CW, where it had been in development this season, to HBO Max with a series order. I hear Supergirl co-creator/executive producer Greg Berlanti and his team had reached out to Benoist, and her interest helped boost the project’s prospects (though the series order by HBO Max is not cast-contingent.)

 Written by Plec and Chozick, The Girls on the Bus, which was originally set up at Netflix before moving to the CW, is inspired by “The Girls on the Bus” chapter in Chozick’s book Chasing Hillary: Ten Years, Two Presidential Campaigns and One Intact Glass Ceiling. The character-driven comedic drama series revolves around four female journalists — one of them to be played by Benoist — who follow every move of a parade of flawed presidential candidates while finding friendship, love and scandal along the way.

Plec executive produces via her My So-Called Company, along with Chozick, Berlanti, Sarah Schechter and David Madden for Berlanti Productions. WBTV, where Berlanti and Benoist are under overall deals, is the studio. (The project, which first came together and sold to Netflix in 2019, stems from Plec’s overall deal at WBTV; she has since moved to Universal Television.)

 

Following her breakout role on Fox’s Glee, Benoist was tapped as the lead of the CW’s Supergirl, which recently wrapped its six-season run. She appeared across the CW’s Arrowverse in her role as Kara Danvers/Supergirl. Benoist is repped by UTA, Anonymous Content and Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz.