Hulu’s ACOTAR Show Could Kick Off The Next Early 2000s Vampire Craze

Summary

• Hulu’s A Court of Thorns and Roses TV show could kick off a new fantasy trend, much like the vampire craze of the 2000s.
• The series has the potential to be a mega-hit with its built-in fan base, romantic supernatural leads, and a fresh and fantastical world.
• The success of ACOTAR could inspire more Fae-centered fantasy projects, bringing stories that deserve the spotlight to mainstream audiences.

Hulu’s upcoming A Court of Thorns and Roses TV show is still in the early stages of development, but a successful adaptation of Sarah J. Maas’ ACOTAR books could kick off the next fantasy show trend — much in the same vein as the early 2000s vampire craze. With Maas as a co-creator, the live-action adaptation will reportedly focus on the first book in the series. Even though the Hulu ACOTAR series is in its infancy, it’s promising: Ronald D. Moore, the Emmy and Peabody Award-winning creative who also developed Outlander for TV, is helming ACOTAR.

Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses — also the name of the first novel in the popular fantasy-romance series — centers on Feyre Archeron. After killing a Fae wolf in the woods, the nineteen-year-old is taken to the faerie lands of Prythian and held captive by Tamlin, an immortal faerie who’s also the High Lord of Prythian. Feyre’s epic journey sees her visiting other faerie courts, battling a looming evil, and living among the Fae. Of course, ACOTAR also boasts tons of romance subplots, making it something like the 2020s version of the 2000s’ vampire craze.

The Court Of Thorns & Roses Show Could Kick Off The Next Vampire Craze (Just With Fae)

Although the vampire-romance trend might have blossomed in the literary world, it also took the film and TV landscape by storm in the early to mid-2000s. Penned by Stephenie Meyer, the four-book Twilight series introduced not-so-scary, angst-ridden vampires who sparkled into the pages of young adult (YA) fiction. The Twilight Saga movies only fueled the pop-cultural phenomenon, with the fantasy-romance film series garnering a whopping $3.36 billion. On the TV side of things, True Blood and The Vampire Diaries, both of which were also adapted from book series, became massive hits.

If Hulu’s A Court of Thorns and Roses TV series ever comes to fruition, it could kick off a new fantasy-romance craze — one with Fae at its center. ACOTAR certainly has Twilight-level potential. Not only does the best-selling book series have a massive, built-in fan base, but ACOTAR‘s story has all the workings of a mega-hit, from romanticized supernatural leads and heavy romance to the fish-out-of-water heroine who must prove her worth in a fresh, fantastical world. With studios always looking for the next trend, ACOTAR could be the perfect fit.

Hulu’s ACOTAR Adaptation Could Give Way To More Fantasy Projects About Fae

Given that A Court of Thorn and Roses originally went viral on TikTok, it certainly has the potential to amass legions of new fans as a TV series. Even now, ACOTAR isn’t the only Fae or faerie-centered adaptation that’s in the works. For example, The Cruel Prince, the first book in Holly Black’s The Folk of the Air trilogy, also chronicles a mortal girl’s adventures in the faerie world — and, reportedly, a Cruel Prince movie is gaining traction. Of course, ACOTAR and Cruel Prince aren’t the only Fae fantasy-romance stories primed to be turned into TV series.

In film and TV, sometimes certain trends just so happen to take shape. Certain stories are green-lit around the same time, and their successes feed into each other. That’s certainly been proven with series like Twilight and The CW’s The Vampire Diaries. If ACOTAR becomes a hit, its success might prompt other streamers and studios to prioritize similar shows. And, if done thoughtfully, Hulu’s ACOTAR can spawn an entire fantasy franchise — one that extends beyond just Feyre and Rhysand’s story. Although an ACOTAR show faces challenges, it also has the propensity to be the next Wheel of Time.

It’s Past Time Fantasy Shows & Movies Put Fae In The Spotlight

Not only are there plenty of moments from the ACOTAR books that deserve their time to shine on screen, but a successful A Court of Thorns and Roses TV series adaptation can put Fae in the spotlight in a huge way. When it comes to mainstream fantasy shows, there’s a distinct lack of Fae stories. Even one smash hit series could change all of that, allowing faerie-centered romance fantasy books, both new and old, to have some much-deserved time in the spotlight. Needless to say, there’s a lot riding on Hulu’s A Court of Thorns and Roses show.