Prime Video's blueprint of the 1999 film, based on the 1782 novel, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, and expands it into an eight-episode debut season. The series follows the students of Manchester College, a group of lying, scheming, duplicitous, manipulative brats who will one day become the future politicians and leaders of America.

Cruel Intentions hails from showrunners Phoebe Fisher and Sara Goodman, who previously held the reins on Prime Video's I Know What You Did Last Summer reboot. Fisher also co-wrote the deliciously sassy 2023 comedy, Down Low, while Goodman is no stranger to scheming young people, having written over a dozen episodes of the classic YA series, Gossip Girl, a series which certainly shares some DNA with Cruel Intentions.

ScreenRant interviewed Fisher and Goodman about their work on Cruel Intentions. They talk about their process of adapting the world and sensibilities of the movie (and the various other adaptations of Les Liaisons Dangereues, including an often overlooked adaptation, 1989's Valmont), and reveling in the over-the-top depravity of the characters. They also talk about the show's relation to politics, and how, perhaps, human nature hasn't changed much between the 18th century and 2024.

Sara Goodman & Phoebe Fisher On Crafting A New Cruel Intentions

"I think we share a sensibility and love for irreverence and taboo."

Screen Rant: Hello there! I woke up at midnight and I watched the whole show.

Sara Goodman: We love you!

Phoebe Fisher: And? What did you think?

Oh my gosh. If my college experience was like that, I either never would have left or never would have made it. To start, just tell me, what is the vibe that you want people to take away from this show?

Phoebe Fisher: Ruthless, sexy, fun. That's the vibe. And the vibe is strong.

Tell me about the "day one" of, like, developing and deciding what this was going to be.

Sara Goodman: I think, once Phoebe and I decided that we were going to do it, I think we share a sensibility and love for irreverence and taboo. And...

Phoebe Fisher: Mess.

Sara Goodman: And mess! And having that comedic element. With the twists and turns of the drama and the manipulation. And having everything look very exclusive. And making sure people want to get in when they're not allowed in. (Laughs) So I think there were so many appealing things about this. Once we decided to put it in the Greek world outside of D.C., it all just started to fall into place.

Phoebe Fisher: And we just sort of took the approach of, we made the show that we want to watch right now. So, hopefully it's what everyone else wants to watch too.

Showrunners Sara Goodman & Phoebe Fisher On The Political Allegory Of Cruel Intentions

"Reputation means everything. And I think we lose track of how deeply embedded in our society all of that stuff still is."

If it wasn't so funny. I don't know if I would have made it through. Because part of me is like, "All of the richest, most powerful kids in the room decide to make the dumbest person in the room the President."

Sara Goodman: (Laughs) And I feel like, I don't know if I can draw any parallels to reality.

Sara and Phoebe: (Sarcastically) No!

Sara Goodman: We were way ahead of our time.

Tell me a little bit about the college version. You have the Congressman character in it, who has not evolved more than his son's peers. He's exactly the same as them, except with gray hair.

Sara Goodman: He's reliving his youth, right? I mean, isn't that...

Phoebe Fisher: That's what parents' weekend is all about!

Sara Goodman: Also in a weird way. It's kind of what politics is all about, which is you're on this side. You're in this club. You're out of that favor. You're flavor of the month. I mean, it's all clubs. It's all jobs. It's all kind of subcultures, I think. And college, I think it's, at least it has names. There's names for those clubs. They've existed for years and years. And reputation means everything. And I think we lose track of how deeply embedded in our society all of that stuff still is.

To be able to have fun with it. And to make characters living in it who also are funny and dastardly and boundary breaking and think the rules don't apply to them... I mean, that's the world we're living in. Right?

How The Cruel Intentions Showrunners Rebooted The Story For 2024

"We want to pay homage and not alienate the fans of the movie because we are fans of the movie."

Can you tell me a little bit about, about making that clean break from the movies, not wanting to be beholden to their tone and characterization and wanting to do your own thing from the ground up?

Phoebe Fisher: Yeah, I think we're, we're both really big fans of the original source material from Dangerous Liaisons to Cruel Intentions. I like to throw in Valmont, too. I think that, yeah, it was just important for us to, to make this its own world and its own new chapter. And we had a lot of fun doing it.

Sara Goodman: Yeah. And I think, at the time, the movie was boundary breaking and so fun, and we took all of the vibes and lots of little Easter Eggs that we wanted and, and we want to pay homage and not alienate the fans of the movie because we are fans of the movie. But we also felt like it's time, just like Cruel Intentions was time for a new version of Dangerous Liaisons were time for a new version.

Phoebe Fisher: Cruelty is timeless.

Sara Goodman & Phoebe Fisher: On TV.

More About Cruel Intentions Season 1

Cruel Intentions follows the elite students of Manchester College, a Washington, D.C.-adjacent university, where reputation means everything, fraternities and sororities are the gold standard, and two ruthless step-siblings, Caroline Merteuil and Lucien Belmont, will do anything to stay on top of the cutthroat social hierarchy. After a brutal hazing incident threatens the entire Greek Life system, they’ll do whatever is necessary to preserve their power and reputation – even if that means seducing Annie Grover, the daughter of the Vice President of the United States. Hearts will be broken, loyalties will be tested, and secrets will be revealed in this modern-day royal court that is Manchester College.

Check out our other Cruel Intentions interviews here:

• Catherine Hook & Zac Burgess
• Savannah Lee Smith & Brooke Lena Johnson
• Sara Silva & Sean Patrick Thomas
• Khobe Clarke & John Kim
• Claire Forlani & Jon Tenney

All episodes of Cruel Intentions season 1 are now streaming on Prime Video.

Source: Screen Rant Plus