Kelly Fremon Craig is back with another coming-of-age comedy. “The Edge of Seventeen” filmmaker’s second feature sees her adapting an iconic novel, Judy Blume’s “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.” The pic tells the story of Margaret Simon (Abby Ryder Fortson), a sixth grader who moves from NYC to the suburbs of New Jersey.
A new trailer for the film, which is set in the ’70s, introduces us to Margaret, who is in the midst of a prayer. “Let me just be normal and regular like everybody else,” she begs. The 11-year-old is consumed with thoughts about God and her changing body. We see her joining a “secret club” that requires her to wear a bra and buying pads with a friend for the first time.
“It’s about this kid who’s trying to figure out if there’s something greater beyond us,” Fremon Craig told EW. “It’s making sure that she’s going to be okay in this time when she feels so alone and uncertain. There’s something about these two things that you would never think would go together — a girl who’s praying for boobs and then asking, ‘Does God exist? And do I believe it? And what do I believe?’ She’s asking life’s biggest questions inside this coming-of-age journey.”
“Girlfriends” creator Mara Brock Akil also has a project based on one of Blume’s novels in the works, a Netflix series that reimagines “Forever.”
“Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” opens April 28. Rachel McAdams and Kathy Bates co-star.
