Cold out? Let the inherent hotness of the cast of Conversations With Friends warm you up. Hulu and BBC 3 jointly announced the main cast of the new series, filled with familiar and new faces, most of them decidedly not Irish. The Sally Rooney adaptation has cast newcomer Alison Oliver as Frances, a 21-year-old student just barely managing the complicated relationships she has with her ex (and best friend) Bobbi, played by Sasha Lane; an older writer named Melissa, who is fascinated with them both, played by Jemima Kirke; and her husband, Nick, a B-list actor, played by Joe Alwyn. While Alison Oliver hails from Lir Academy, the same drama school at Trinity College Dublin that taught Paul Mescal how to wear a chain, Sasha Lane is American, Joe Alwyn is a London boy, and Jemima Kirke is somewhere in between.
The series will be directed by Lenny Abrahamson (Room) alongside Leanne Welham. “I’ll be joined by a world class crew (many of whom worked on Normal People) and supporting cast and I’m particularly happy to have Leanne Welham come on board,” Abrahamson said in a release. “I’ve been an admirer of her work for a long time and I have no doubt she will bring great skill and subtlety to the episodes she directs.” Sally Rooney will also executive produce. No word on the involvement of Taylor Alison Swift, one of the many people who recommended Conversations With Friends back in 2019, but if a rerecording ended up in the show, who would be mad?
