Zoe Saldana is set to star on Netflix’s limited-series adaptation of Tembi Locke’s 2019 New York Times best-selling memoir, “From Scratch,” which she will executive produce alongside Reese Witherspoon.
Here’s the official logline for the series: “From Scratch” is a sweeping, autobiographical romance that follows an American woman as she falls in love with a Sicilian man while studying abroad in Italy then builds a life with him in the United States. When she unexpectedly loses him to illness, she is challenged to pull herself through grief so she can raise their daughter as they would have raised her together: with hope, joy and infinite love.
Tembi Locke’s sister, Attica Locke (“Empire,” “When They See Us”), will serve as showrunner and executive producer on the series. Also executive producing are Saldana and her sisters and co-producers Cisely Saldana and Mariel Saldana, as well as Witherspoon and her producing partner, Lauren Neustadter, for Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine banner. Richard Abate, Jermaine Johnson, and Will Rowbotham will executive produce for 3 Arts Entertainment.
“Attica and I are honored to be adapting ‘From Scratch’ with the visionary Reese Witherspoon, Lauren Neustadter, Richard Abate and the incredibly gifted Zoe Saldana,” Tembi Locke said. “We have a shared interest in championing stories that bring a rich tapestry of experiences to the screen. I am thrilled that this global love story has found a perfect home at Netflix.”
“This is a profound true story of love and family, deprivation and nourishment, that needs to be brought to life on the screen as Tembi Locke brought it vividly to life for me on the page,” Zoe Saldana said. “We are grateful to Netflix and thrilled to be working with Reese, Lauren, Attica and 3 Arts on this wonderful project.”
“Tembi’s memoir is a raw and tender exhibition of life in all its pieces,” Witherspoon added. “She brings you into her love, her loss and her resilience with such vulnerability and strength. We immediately fell for Attica and Tembi’s vision and feel honored to have the opportunity to help bring it to life on-screen. We could not imagine more perfect partners for this than Zoe and her sisters and 3 Arts Entertainment, along with the incredible team at Netflix.”
Channing Dungey, Netflix’s vice president of original series said: “Between the Locke sisters and the Saldana sisters, I’ve never seen a show that’s more of a family affair. Reese Witherspoon and Hello Sunshine have been producing really exciting content and we’re thrilled to make this powerful and emotional series with them.”
“From Scratch” was published on April 30 by Simon and Schuster and selected as Reese’s Book Club x Hello Sunshine May 2019 book pick.
Variety first reported news of the limited series.