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A24, Square Peg to Develop Adrian Tomine’s ‘The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist’ as TV Series (EXCLUSIVE)

Square Peg and A24 are teaming to develop Adrian Tomine’s graphic memoir “The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist” for television as an animated series, Variety has learned exclusively.

The memoir, first published in 2020, explores Tomine’s life through a series of autobiographical sketches. When a sudden medical incident lands Tomine in the emergency room, he begins to question if it was really all worthwhile: despite the accolades and opportunities of a seemingly charmed career, it’s the gaffes, humiliations, slights, and insults he’s experienced (or caused) within the industry that loom largest in his memory.

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Tomine is adapting the book for the screen. Ari Aster, Lars Knudsen, and Emily Hildner will executive produce for Square Peg.

“As devoted fans of Adrian’s work, we couldn’t be more thrilled to be helping him to adapt his beautiful book for television,
Aster said. “I can now forgive him all that he did to me. We have begun counseling, which has been a productive and therapeutic process.”

Tomine is a New York Times bestselling cartoonist and illustrator for The New Yorker. He is adapting his 2007 graphic novel “Shortcomings” for Roadside Attractions with Randall Park set to direct. His 2015 graphic short story collection “Killing & Dying” was adapted into a feature called “Paris, 13th District” by director Jacques Audiard, that premiered at Cannes.

“Ari Aster is one of the great filmmakers of our time, and, unsurprisingly, he also has impeccable taste when it comes to film and TV,” Tomine said. “So when he told me he thought there was a way to adapt my book–and to create something innovative and unexpected and true to the material–who was I to argue? I have immense respect for Ari, as well as Square Peg and A24, and I’m honored and thrilled (and honestly, a little shocked) to be collaborating with them.”

Tomine is repped by UTA. Square Peg is repped by WME; Aster by WME, 2AM and Ziffren Brittenham; and Knudsen by WME and Granderson Des Rochers LLP.

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