The Brilliant Friend, the HBO drama based on Elena Ferrante’s (The Lost Daughter) four-part book series of the same name, has been renewed for a fourth season, according to Deadline. The show’s fourth season will be its final one.
The drama was also renewed by Rai, an Italian broadcaster. The upcoming fourth season will be based on the last book in Ferrante’s book series, The Story Of The Last Child. This past season was based on the third book in the series, Those Who Leave And Those Who Stay.
Francesca Orsi, HBO’s Executive Vice President of Programming, released a statement on the drama’s renewal and final season.
“When we decided to bring Elena Ferrante’s masterpiece Neapolitan Novels to the screen, we knew Elena and Lila’s story had to be told in its entirety,” Orsi stated, per Deadline. “It’s both thrilling and bittersweet to embark on this fourth and final season. We’re deeply grateful to the entire creative team led by Saverio Costanzo and Lorenzo Mieli, and to our season three director Daniele Luchetti. We look forward to completing the quartet and know The Story of the Lost Child will bring the series to a close with the same heart, intimacy, and epic storytelling that has defined Elena and Lila’s journey from the beginning.”
Also releasing a statement on the renewal was Maria Pia Ammirati, the Director of Rai Fiction.
“What lies behind this success is the precious opportunity offered by Elena Ferrante’s four Neapolitan Novels and the realistic, exciting and originally Italian imagery that has brought to life the audio-visual transposition of the friendship between Lila and Lenù,” Ammirati said, per Deadline. “This mix between a strongly characterized environment, marked first of all by the dialect, then by its humanity and by the emotions heightened through the power of a female friendship, has proved to be a driving force for seriality, as well as a showcase for the creativity and expertise of Italy’s audio-visual industry.”
My Brilliant Friend stars newcomer Margherita Mazzucco as Elena Greco and Gaia Girace (A Future Together) as Lila Cerullo. Alba Rohrwacher (I Am Love) narrates the show.
Saverio Costanzo (The Solitude Of Prime Numbers) created the series. It is executive produced by Lorenzo Mieli (The Mafia Only Kills In Summer), Paolo Sorrentino (This Must Be The Place), and Jennifer Schuur (In Treatment).