Latest news with #Girlfriends
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Forever' Showrunner Mara Brock Akil Wants to ‘Give Boys Their Full Humanity'
The Friday before the new Netflix adaptation of Judy Blume's novel Forever was set to release, its creator Mara Brock Akil was power-walking through New York City for exercise. The Los Angeles resident was in town doing a round of press to support the show, and, in a full-circle moment, found herself on the campus of NYU, a college her lead character, Justin (Michael Cooper Jr.), considers when gaming out his future in Episode Seven. The moment forced Akil to pause and reflect in the midst of crunch time. Forever's release hit close to home for the longtime TV writer and showrunner in a way much of her other work has not. Mainly, that's because the muse behind the eight-episode series is her older son, Yasin, 21. 'As a mother, I'm very emotional,' says Akil when we speak by Zoom just after her walk. Her voice cracks in between tears as she speaks about Yasin and her youngest son, Nasir, 16. We bond over being parents of boys. My own son is a little over five-and-a-half — not old enough to watch Forever's tale of teen sex and love — but I tell Akil that when he's of age, the show will be required viewing. 'This project came from that love for our sons that has some fear in it,' she says. 'My son is out in the world and thriving, but the catastrophic parenting part of me, I had to let her go. It's hard, but part of this project is therapizing.' More from Rolling Stone Madonna Biopic Series With Shawn Levy in the Works at Netflix: Report Karol G Celebrates Netflix Documentary Release with 'Milagros' 7 Things We Learned From Karol G's 'Tomorrow Was Beautiful' Documentary If you've been watching television since the 1990s, you know Akil's work. From her days in the writers room for hit shows like Moesha to her own creations — from Girlfriends to The Game and Being Mary Jane — Akil's canvas has always reflected the current times and the lived experience of Black women she knows. Characters like Joan (Girlfriends), Melanie (The Game) and Mary Jane not only solidified the range of actors like Tracee Ellis Ross, Tia Mowry, and Gabrielle Union (respectively) but allowed Black women to examine their complexities and humanity through the safety and context of the screen. Now, Forever — which has been renewed for a second season — brings that sensitivity and energy to an exploration of adolescence and first love. 'My whole body of work, starting with Girlfriends, especially, I have been wanting to carve out the vulnerability of Blackness,' says Akil. 'Now, having a front row seat to raising boys, I wanted to give them their full humanity. Which includes wobbling through not feeling secure one minute and feeling very secure the next.' Blume released Forever, her seventh novel, 50 years ago. It was the author's response to a request from her teenage daughter, who was curious but intimidated by sex, due to its often violent and scary depictions in literature. Blume's story follows a teenager named Katherine who falls in love with a boy named Michael and loses her virginity to him. Throughout the book's 26 chapters, Blume examines the question of whether or not first loves are eternal. While it would later be banned (even in Blume's children's school district) for being 'sexually explicit for younger readers,' its publication was a revolutionary act at the time, in step with the 'Love Movement' that fueled the 1970s. For Akil, who was five when Forever came out but read it several years later, when she was around 12, its impact was monumental. 'What Judy did was badass,' says Akil. 'Judy gave young girls the idea that they can be honest about the emotional and physical things happening to them, and they could explore it in a healthy way and still have a future.' While she was a fan of Blume's work, as a young girl Akil was often forced to reimagine Blume's white characters such as Katherine and Michael in her own likeness and melanated being. So in 2020, when Akil got word that Blume was ready to partner with Netflix in bringing one of her books to a major streaming service for the first time, she jumped at the opportunity to make her pre-teen visions a reality. 'My younger self didn't even wait for a conference call,' says Akil. 'She just raised her hand and was like 'I want in on that.' Akil says she was the one who pushed Forever as a suitable adaptation. According to Akil, Blume hadn't considered it; she didn't think there was much curiosity around sex in this modern age of technology and information. But Akil knew there was an untapped audience for the story. 'Judy and I talked about how I was going to translate the book,' says Akil. 'She wrote the book at the time to have a conversation with her daughter about sex and making healthy choices around her future. Katherine is the most vulnerable in society, and we looked at her and watched her chart her life. I posit that young Black men are the most vulnerable in society as they enter into the heart and physical space of first love, exploration, and desire.' She adds, 'To reimagine it for a Black young adult in Los Angeles in 2018 was the perfect alchemy for me.' Although Akil nods to certain plot points within Blume's novel — like the teens meeting at a New Year's Eve party where fondue is a noted delicacy — her unique storytelling shines through. The lives of Justin and his love interest, Keisha (Lovie Simone), feel deeply considered, and offer commentary on not just teen issues but everything from gender roles to parenting, socioeconomics, and an education system that is unsupportive of neurodivergence. Where Blume's 1975 version prioritizes the voice of Katherine, Akil points the lens towards Justin, who — in the most refreshing ways — is the opposite of what traditional media presents in depicting Black boyhood. He's not the star basketball player (he's actually benched for a good portion of the season) and is quite perceptive and sensitive to the world around him. 'Images of Black boys have positioned them more as man-children than allowing them to have their childhood,' says Akil. 'Justin's honesty and maturity actually is linked to ADHD. A lot of our children are misdiagnosed in the system. Not detecting the way [Black] children learn sends them in the wrong direction, and for Black boys that is a direct correlation to prison.' In Akil's story, Justin and Keisha are elementary-school classmates who've reconnected, now navigating the anxieties around their last years of high school and the grown-up decisions that await them. Keisha, an around-the-way girl from 'below the 10' (that is, South L.A.), is a straight-A student who is banking on her academics and track stardom to earn a full ride to Howard University. Her drive is a trauma response to witnessing the financial struggles of her single mom (Xosha Roquemore) — so much so that when she faces a sexual violation by another student at her old private school, she suffers in silence so as to not be seen as an inconvenience. Justin, meanwhile, lives in the hills of L.A, with his father Eric (Wood Harris), a renowned chef, and his high-strung but well-intentioned mother Dawn (Karen Pittman). Unlike Keisha, Justin is uncertain of the future — a privilege afforded to him by his family's financial security — and viewers journey with him as he battles his learning and developmental differences and his parents' expectations, which blind him to his own desires. The contrasts we see throughout are a testament to Akil's intentionality. Blume's Michael was viewed through the lens of Katherine — a radical move for the time period, having a man silenced and decentered; Justin's positioning here is just as revolutionary. Akil presents Justin's perspective of the adults molding him. Consistently, we feel the tension between him and his mom, who — while attuned to his wave of emotions as he navigates his first love and heartbreak — has a hard time navigating her own feelings and fears. Aware of his ADHD, she is often the balloon-popper of his daydreams, holding him accountable for his future and pushing him in spite of his differences. Yet she is also hyper-aware of who he is in society and what that means in the year 2018, following the killings of young Black boys like Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown. 'As a parent raising Black boys, I think they're the most innocent and precious, but right after fourth grade, [in society's eyes] they're no longer adorable and cute,' Akil says, becoming teary-eyed again. 'As Black parents in a Black household, you might over-protect your sons for their safety.' It's through Dawn that we see Akil's strength for writing Black women characters with depth, agency, and complexity. We also see fatherhood through Justin's lens. Eric is often the buffer between Justin and Dawn, able to set boundaries while giving Justin more leeway to grow up and have natural experiences. But what is natural when you are Black in a racist America? 'If you're raising Black boys you have to tell them about rape,' Akil says. 'It's not their disease, it's America's disease on them, but you have to protect them from it and that is the most heartbreaking thing.' It would be easy to compare Eric as 'good cop' to Dawn's 'bad.' Yet the lessons he teaches — such as the importance of consent, wearing condoms, and facing hard conversations — feel like a starter kit to parenting adolescent boys in a more conscious society, and it's refreshing to witness. Although a secondary character, Keisha also offers a beautiful mediation on the rite of passage from Black girlhood to womanhood. We see early on how her traumas, while kept internal, motivate her towards success — a testament to Black women in America, who oftentimes are lovingly teased for their influx of degrees and certifications obtained in the aftermath of tragedy. In Blume's Forever, Michael had more sexual experience than Katherine. In Akil's, that role was paved for Keisha, whose sexual encounter while attending a majority-white private school speaks to the dangers of technology but also exposes racist taboos and the lack of safety that burdens Black girls from autonomous sexuality. 'I wanted to talk about the white institutions of it all and what it's doing to Black girls,' says Akil. 'Throughout the story, Keisha is coming into her beauty and body. As smart as she is, she's having to chart this new attention.' The beauty of Forever is that despite difficult moments in its episodes, there is no overt trauma; and yet, there is much to question and unpack. How do we revamp the educational system — even the workforce — to be inclusive for neurodivergent people? What is the balance of parenting children in ways that are gentle yet firm? How can adults, hardened by life's woes, revamp their own first-love feeling in their day to day? 'My version of Forever comes from the compassion of the youth,' Akil says. 'Not only was the world telling them they didn't matter, but we as parents were loving them from that fearful place and were narrowing their gap to exist and to have these normal rites of passage. I'm just trying to make space for young people to have their humanity. We should be so blessed to witness them make healthy choices and continue to bloom and help nudge them and protect them, and that's not happening. This generation, of all ages, are lonely as ever. We might know how to have sex, but we're losing intimacy.' As Forever debuted over Mother's Day weekend, the boy who took my virginity — my first love — sent me a text to wish me a happy one. It's a ritual we've maintained since our own mishap in high school, when we almost became teen parents. Although imperfect, the parental guidance on sexuality within Forever is what I wish our teenage selves had to support us. And still, Forever drives home that even if a connection parts ways, you never forget a genuine soul. A reminder that life isn't scripted, though the right script can help us imagine different possibilities for ourselves, our children, and our community. 'When you see great art reflected, it really asks the viewers to engage in a bunch of questions and conversations,' Akil says. 'I want people to remember that level of joy around their first, just to remember that feeling and want that in our lives for ourselves. And because we want that for ourselves, we make space for our children to love themselves, each other, and choose wisely the future that's aligned to them.' Best of Rolling Stone The 50 Best 'Saturday Night Live' Characters of All Time Denzel Washington's Movies Ranked, From Worst to Best 70 Greatest Comedies of the 21st Century
Forbes
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Netflix's 'Forever' Reframes Black Parenting—And It's Exactly What America Needs Right Now
FOREVER. (L to R) Karen Pittman as Dawn and Wood Harris as Eric in Episode 102 of Forever. Cr. ... More Elizabeth Morris/Netflix © 2024 For generations, television has struggled to capture the complexity of Black family life without stereotypes or moral lessons. In Netflix's new teen romance drama Forever, created by Mara Brock Akil and based on Judy Blume's 1975 novel, viewers are given something rare: not just a love story, but a layered portrait of Black parenting—loving, present, protective, and real. At first glance, Forever is about teenage love. Justin Edwards (played by Michael Cooper, Jr.) and Keisha Clark (played by Lovie Simone) are high school students navigating first crushes, emotional boundaries, and the kind of romantic intensity that feels world-altering when you're 17. But Akil's genius lies in the backdrop she builds—the homes, families, and communities that cocoon these teens in safety, expectations, and unconditional love. In an era when media depictions of Black youth still too often revolve around trauma, poverty, and systemic failure, Forever offers a radical counter-narrative: Black families where parents are not just present, but deeply invested in their children's emotional and intellectual development. This isn't aspirational fiction—it's reality for millions of Black households. The show simply turns the camera toward what has long existed, but rarely gets screen time. FOREVER. (L to R) Michael Cooper Jr. as Justin Edwards, Wood Harris as Eric, and Karen Pittman as ... More Dawn in Episode 101 of Forever. Cr. Elizabeth Morris/Netflix © 2024 'We have cops out here shooting Black boys like it's open season, and I'm tripping,' Karen Pittman said in her role as Dawn Edwards, Justin's mother, during the opening scene of the series when Justin asks to attend a house party. With Black women, many of them mothers and members of the middle class, experiencing the steepest job loss of any demographic in April of 2025, one can't help but watch Forever through the lens of the current moment. Across the country, America is witnessing mounting efforts—both legislative and economic—to dismantle public education, decimate the middle class, and hide stories that speak to Black life with nuance and dignity. From book bans to budget cuts, from anti-DEI policies to culture war campaigns, the targets may be political, but the collateral damage is generational. It's no coincidence then that Forever, already greenlit for a second season, debuted during a cultural flashpoint. When Akil—best known for Girlfriends, The Game, and Being Mary Jane—set out to adapt Blume's novel, she rooted the story in three places that shaped her creative rise: Compton, Ladera Heights, and the halls of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. FOREVER. (L to R) Assistant Director Anna Notarides and Showrunner/Executive Producer/Director (105) ... More Mara Brock Akil behind the scenes of Episode 105 of Forever. Cr. Elizabeth Morris/Netflix © 2024 But what gives Forever its pulse isn't just geography—it's what happens in Black households. 'Showcasing Los Angeles for Los Angeles—not just as a stand-in for Hollywood or Santa Monica—the series brought landmarks to the screen that upper, middle, and working-class Black families know,' said Jayar Jackson, political commentator and father to a Black son. 'Because income doesn't keep us from each other in Los Angeles.' Jackson, host of The Young Turks, recently relocated from L.A. to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, citing the region's increasingly inflated housing market. He and his wife watched Forever together—and found themselves emotionally drawn to Akil's storytelling. WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 29: Jayar Jackson attends the TYT Watchdog Correspondents' Dinner 2017 on ... More April 29, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo byfor The Young Turks) 'We saw our own love story in that of [Justin's parents] Dawn and Eric,' Jackson said. 'Even though it wasn't explicitly told, it was felt in the way they related to each other—and to Justin.' Jackson said he was particularly moved by the parenting dynamic between Dawn and Eric, and the emotional labor that came with raising a teenage Black boy. 'The roles of being tough and harsh on him, to then being easy and nurturing—to keep him from thinking we just don't know what he's going through,' he explained. For Jackson and his wife, both of whom are raising their son in a world that often misunderstands or stereotypes Black boys, Forever struck a nerve. Jackson said they stayed up until 1 a.m. some nights to finish the series. 'From Justin's IEP in school, to the way his basketball coach treated him, to the fact that he has a best friend named Darius,' Jackson said, 'There are so many exquisitely portrayed nuances about life as a Black family that's attentive and aware of our son's experience in this world—and how it treats him.' Simona Noce Wright, a Black mother of four and co-founder of District Motherhued—a Washington, D.C.–based nonprofit serving more than 45,000 Black millennial moms— shared similar sentiments. For her, Forever was more than a series. 'It was a mirror,' she said. 'It was an all-too-real depiction of everyday life,' Wright continued. 'showcasing the true realities of Black parenting in a technology-driven society.' WASHINGTON, DC — August 10: Nikki Osei- Barrett, left, and Simona Noce Wright are founders and ... More producers of District Motherhued and Mommy en Blanc. Mommy En Blanc is a celebration of Black motherhood hosted by Simona Noce Wright and Nikki Osei-Barrett, who are the founders and producers of District Motherhued (cq) and Mommy En Blanc. The event gathers African-American mothers and their children for a picnic on the DC waterfront where families can get together for community. (photo by Andre Chung for The Washington Post via Getty Images) Wright noted that this kind of Black parental representation—rooted in nuance and emotional honesty—is still far too rare on both the big and small screens. '...This series normalizes our existence,' Wright said. 'More importantly, it allows us to see ourselves. We see ourselves in Dawn and Shelly. We see our partners in Eric. We see our sons in Justin. And we see our daughters in Keisha.' Wright said she was particularly moved by the realistic portrayal of co-parenting conflicts—especially during emotionally charged moments between Justin's parents. 'As a Black woman and mom, we are often forced to put our foot down when it comes to raising our Black boys, especially in interactions with Black girls and women,' Wright said. 'Seeing that tension and its nuances mimicked on screen was necessary and important, especially now.' 'In Forever, Eric Edwards, portrayed by Wood Harris as a successful restaurateur raising two Black boys while building a business, embodies the quiet strength and layered Black fatherhood rarely explored on screen. 'This is Daddy giving you the game. Giving you the game of life,' Harris, acting as the Edwards patriarch, said in the film.' For Wright, those moments hit close to home—and reminded her that representation isn't just about visibility, but about truth. 'These are normal dialogues in our home, and this series raises that awareness. It's an unfortunate thought to consider, yet still important for our existence as normal Black families to be depicted as we exist.' A truth too often left out of national conversations—but captured through Akil's creative lens—is that Black parents, whether college-educated or not, build fortresses of care around their children. Excellence isn't confined to test scores or income brackets; it's expressed through family dinners, firm boundaries, hard conversations, and soft landings. In Forever, parenting is far from perfect, but it is purposeful. Parents instill real-life lessons that, throughout the series, are often echoed back to them by their children in quiet 'aha moments' that reaffirm the everyday brilliance of Black parenting. The Black family has long served as a cornerstone in Black America's pursuit of power within a system built on their labor—often without fair compensation or full acknowledgment. For author, father, and Brookings Institution senior fellow Dr. Andre Perry, a series like Forever underscore the significance of the Black family with the cultural platform it deserves. 'In Forever, we're seeing something not often projected by media: Black parents who are intentional, but naturally engaged in their children's lives,' said Perry, whose book 'Black Power Scorecard' became a bestseller. 'Research shows that wealth shapes family composition in a population. However, parenting affects how children see themselves and others in the world.' While the teenage love story is compelling, what gives the show its soul is the context around that love: the quiet rituals of home. There are heartfelt conversations between mothers and sons, tensions between fathers and daughters, and moments where wisdom is passed down, often wrapped in warmth and accountability. FOREVER. (L to R) Wood Harris as Eric and Michael Cooper Jr. as Justin Edwards in Episode 105 of ... More Forever. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2025 One poignant line from Mr. Edwards to Justin —'Men have to go through fire to find out who they are on the other side of the heat'—offers a blueprint for positive Black masculinity, delivered not through sermon, but by presence. These moments show how grief, joy, faith, and fear can coexist—especially within the kind of strong family structures that Dr. Perry believes are essential to addressing deep-rooted inequities. 'We have not seen what relationships can look like in Black America largely because of wealth divides in this country,' Perry said. 'However, parenting can help mitigate some of the impacts of a broken criminal justice system, underfunded schools, inadequate housing, and other social ills. Parenting can be a disruptor.' Critically, Forever doesn't ignore the world outside the home. It meets it head-on. The show acknowledges the systemic pressures bearing down on Black families—but refuses to let that define them. Instead, it insists on full human'These white folks at these private schools tell us it takes a village—until it comes to our children.,' Pittman, acting as Mrs. Edwards, said in Forever Episode 5 in reference to Keisha's transfer to another school. 'These are the years to mess up, while you still have a village around you to get you through. The village at Brookwood failed Keisha, but this family will not.' By acknowledging Black parents' strength and the systemic barriers they've long faced in Forever, Akil achieves one of art's highest callings: reframing life itself. The series shows what's possible when society stops asking Black parents to justify their existence and starts recognizing the brilliance, strategy, and endurance that has always been there. Dr. Andre Perry is a senior fellow and director of the Center for Community Uplift at the Brookings ... More Institution. While Black families—like Black people—are far from monolithic, Forever carefully paints a portrait of a family that lives in the middle, representing both the aspirations and cultural values that resonate across the Black community—no matter their ZIP code, immigration status or the number of parents residing in the household. This layered storytelling reflects a broad, shared identity that's rooted in love, accountability, and survival. For anyone who has ever dreamed big and dared to say it out loud, Forever offers something rare: the chance to see your own mother, father, auntie, or mentor reflected in its characters. It offers visibility, affirmation—and perhaps even healing. In today's America, where so much energy is spent dividing us, Forever reminds us what actually holds us together: love, care, and the sacred duty of raising the next generation. It's more than television—it's testimony.
Buzz Feed
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Why Forever Is Netflix's Most Addictive Teen Romance
Forever has only been on Netflix for two full days and I truly can't stop thinking about it, but more importantly, I don't want to stop thinking about it. Forever is a reimagined version of Judy Blume's controversial 1975 coming-of-age novel of the same name. The teen drama series adaptation was created by Mara Brock Akil — the same woman who brought us Girlfriends, The Game, Being Mary Jane, Love Is, and more. I mean, who better to give us a layered romance with dynamic characters?! The story is set in 2018 Los Angeles and follows highschoolers, Keisha Clark (Lovie Simone) and Justin Edwards (Michael Cooper Jr.), as they navigate first love, dating woes, societal norms, and family and friends — all this as they prepare for life after high school. Meet Keisha: a driven, intelligent, and resilient high school senior with aspirations of attending Howard University on a track scholarship. She also has a closet of clothes I'd love to raid. As a standout athlete and top student, Keisha is determined to forge a successful future, despite the challenges she faces growing up in a single-parent household where her mother, Shelly (Xosha Roquemore), works tirelessly to provide for her. Keisha's haunted by a past incident that keeps interfering with her present life, despite how hard she tries to move on from it. Meet Justin: A talented basketball player, Justin is also intellectually curious, often described as "a nerd at heart disguised in an athlete's body." He is in the process of understanding his neurodivergence, specifically ADHD, which adds another layer to his journey of self-discovery. He's also refreshingly honest and in-tune with his emotions. Justin is the son of affluent parents—his mother, Dawn (Karen Pittman), a Harvard-educated executive, and his father, Eric (Wood Harris), a successful restaurateur. Despite his privileged upbringing, Justin grapples with the pressures of high expectations and the desire to forge his own path. Keisha and Justin reunite after randomly seeing each other at a party. It's the first time they've seen each other in person since they were kids, and what blossoms between them after that reunion is a wild, heartfelt tale of young love and the roadblocks that come along the way. Lovie and Michael were the perfect choices to bring these characters to life on screen. I can't applaud their performances enough. I'm 34 years old and going on this teen journey had me in my feelings, reminiscing about my younger years, and how heightened my emotions were dealing with relationships for the first time. This show encapsulated it perfectly. What also makes this series so special is the way the viewer is brought into their entire world. You not only connect with the protagonists, but you also form a bond with the parents... ...and friends who play a big part in Justin and Keisha's lives (again, perfect casting for everyone involved). I was hooked from the very first episode, and I'm already plotting on my next rewatch. But I'm not the only one who fell head over heels for Forever. Here's what people online are saying: Have you watched Forever yet? If so, pleaseeeee share your thoughts in the comments so we can talk about it!
Daily Mirror
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
'Perfect' new Netflix show with 100% Rotten Tomatoes score has viewers 'hooked'
Netflix viewers have been raving about a new show, which has a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes - and people are already begging for it to be renewed for another series Netflix fans have been obsessing over a new show boasting a flawless 100% Rotten Tomatoes score. The series, called Forever, has taken social media platform X by storm, with viewers gushing about its perfection. Adapted from Judy Blume's novel of the same name, the show premiered on Netflix on May 8, 2025, and has already garnered immense praise. Set in 2018 Los Angeles, Forever tells the poignant tale of two young athletes, Keisha Clark (Lovie Simone) and Justin Edwards (Michael Cooper Jr. ), as they navigate their first love. The show has clearly resonated with audiences, who are eagerly calling for another series. One X user exclaimed: "Just finished ep 8 of Forever, and I don't know how to process that final scene. I need Netflix to renew this ASAP so that we can get Keisha and Justin back on our screens again to finish their love story. Black love stories DO matter!" Another fan raved: "The music and the kiss. The most perfect show in all aspects. It's all I could wish for #ForeverNetflix." A third viewer praised the show's creator, Mara Brock Akil, saying: "Moesha, Girlfriends, The Game, Being Mary Jane, #ForeverNetflix ...Mara Brock Akil has literally NEVER done me wrong when it comes to creating shows that become my all time favourites. Still early for Forever, with only one season out, but there's potential!" Fans were ecstatic, as one viewer passionately exclaimed: "LET'S RENEW FOR SEASON TWO! I NEED MORE! LET'S GET PRODUCTION GOING." Despite being out for barely a day (at the time of writing), the show has already nabbed a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes. Entranced, one viewer penned: "Absolutely loved it. Was hooked from first five minutes. Beautifully executed and worth the watch." Another was all praise for the series, saying: "I LOVED IT. Their chemistry was top notch. The casting was sooooo good! "I like that it just wasn't the love story, but the other family stories within that. And the music on this is stellar - both the music and how it was used. A 10/10 series!" Netflix had in fact already given the green light back in November 2022 for the TV adaptation of the book, Forever, which features a star-studded cast including Karen Pittman, Wood Harris, Xosha Roquemore, Marvin Lawrence Winans III, Barry Shabaka Henley, Ali Gallo, Niles Fitch, Paigion Walker and E'myri Crutchfield. The teasers were out by January, leaving audiences on tenterhooks up until its recent release. Clearly, they find their patience richly rewarded based on their glowing reactions. On Netflix's own site, the show is described as follows: "Reunited as teens, two childhood friends fall deeply in love, experiencing the joy and heartache of a first romance that will change their lives forever." Mara Brock Akil, the powerhouse behind the show's production and direction, opened up to Netflix about her inspiration, saying: "I've always credited Judy Blume as part of the seasoning of my voice as a writer. She was one of the first writers I read that dared to be honest about the human condition in young people and you can see traces of her writing style within my own. I'm honoured to reimagine one of my favourite books, Forever." Remarkably, it's been half a century since Blume's novel hit the shelves, yet Brock Akil's fresh take on it seeks to prove how certain themes defy the passage of time. "I'm thrilled that Mara has chosen to tell this story through her own lens," Blume expressed. "It is gratifying to know that, 50 years after its release, the love story at the core of Forever is still resonating with audiences." The idea to adapt Forever for television sparked in Brock Akil's mind back in 2020 when she noticed other works by Blume were getting screen adaptations. Initially, however, Blume herself wasn't entirely convinced that the narrative would connect with today's youth. "I found out that Judy wasn't sure that it could translate in this modern era, given how exposed young people are to sexuality and the topic of love. I got to talk to Judy, told her my perspective, and we resonated," Brock Akil recounted.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Netflix 'Forever' based on Judy Blume book: Mara Brock Akil continues to evaluate the 'idyllic American dream'
Judy Blume's 1975 novel Forever has gotten a modern day update with a Netflix series, from iconic showrunner and executive producer Mara Brock Akil (Girlfriends). With the novel being the subject of controversy since its release, due to the frank conversations its characters have about sex, even being removed from a school district in Florida in 2023, Akil's reimagining of the story pays homage to the original, while placing its lead characters Keisha (Lovie Simone) and Justin (Michael Cooper Jr.) in 2018 Los Angeles. Blume wrote Forever shortly after the birth control pill was approved for use in the U.S. As Akil looked at adapting this story, it came after George Floyd's murder in 2020 and a time when she saw, as she told Netflix's Tudum, "Black boy as the most vulnerable person who needs to be protected." Just as Blume was able to honestly reflect the conversations and feelings of teens in the '70s, Akil does that for a new generation. "Meeting your icon, it was a fan girl moment, for sure," Akil told Yahoo Canada about meeting Blume. "The little girl in me was in awe to face her and to talk to her. ... I did fan girl for a minute and then we kind of took a deep breath." "She met me as a peer, as a storyteller, and then we were really able to have a conversation about, how could this book truly be translated, reimagined into a modern time? ... I love how engaged she is about story. ... It matters to her how her work is going to be interpreted, and I appreciated that she cared that much, and that also put a little bit more of a fire under me. Not that I really need it, because I care so much, but I did carry that energy with me." Forever begins with Justin asking his parents if he can go to a New Year's Eve party with some teens from school. But his mother Dawn (Karen Pittman), in particular, is concerned. 'We got cops out here shooting Black boys like it's open season,' she says. "Might as well let me live before I die," Justin says in response. After some back-and-forth, Justin's parents allow him to go, with his dad Eric (Wood Harris) laying down the ground rules. "You be yourself. And if you meet a young lady … and she even hesitates. You don't do it. If you're talking to somebody and they're drunk, don't do it, and if she's a white girl, don't do it," Eric tells Justin. "Otherwise, have a good time." Justin grew up in a wealthy family, attending a predominantly white school and his parents have tried to provide him with all the opportunities to succeed and manage his ADHD so that he can get into a great college, specifically Dawn's alma mater Northwestern. Justin is also honing his basketball skills on the school team, and in his spare time loves creating beats. "So many of us growing up, we have that kind of push and pull relationship with our parents," Cooper Jr. said. "I know for sure my mother is a Dawn, 100 per cent." "Me and Karen really pulled from our personal lives and we were able to kind of use that to bring Justin and Dawn's relationship alive. I mean, I just love Karen Pittman. ... She's a killer." At this New Year's Eve party Justin meets Keisha. They actually went to school together when they were younger, but Justin doesn't remember her. Keisha is laser focused on getting a scholarship to Howard University, from her academics to being a track star. But when her ex-boyfriend Christian (Xavier Mills) shares an intimate video of them, her life was turned upside down, having to step away from her high school scholarship to change schools, with her mom now struggling financially, including ensuring she has enough money to pay for Keisha's track gear. But Keisha never told her mom about what happened with Christian. Forever authentically portrays the double standard of how the video didn't impact Christian at all, if anything made him even more popular with his peers, while it was incredibly destructive and traumatic for Keisha. And in a particularly impactful moment, we get to see Keisha confront Christian. "You're all over the video too, but no one says anything about you," Keisha says. "You just walk away like nothing ever happened." "It felt freeing. It felt like a moment for my character to really release all of this tension that has shaped a lot of her days," Simone said about filming that scene. "It was a moment where I felt she was really sure of herself." "It was really nice and freeing to see that through another character, .. and especially as a Black woman as well, getting to really just release that tension and all of that resentment that you feel towards that person." In a separate interview, Akil highlighted that moment was about giving voice to "the nuance of the pain and the suffering." "We've heard a lot of stories, there's a lot of people who are navigating that, those levels of betrayal and challenge alone, and to give them a voice, let Keisha speak for herself, and thus for others," Akil said. "I also want to make a point that I think in this era of the new age where the phone has impacted culture in so many ways, ... a lot of young people are making mistakes, but during this time, they can literally ruin your entire future." "I think Christian made a huge mistake that is going to impact Keisha forever. And I really wanted an opportunity to let children or young people see themselves, and even adult people, what we are doing and what we could potentially be doing to people that we don't intend to do, but yet, the mistake can be lasting." As the love story between Keisha and Justin evolves, including break ups and make ups, a particularly impactful episode is when Keisha tags along with her friend on a trip to Martha's Vineyard, hoping to reconnect with Justin after an argument. With the episode directed by Akil, not only is it beautifully shot, with such a breathtaking use of light outside of the show's city scenery, we got an incredibly satisfying romantic reunion moment. "For me, it was very different. Keisha, her upbringing is very L.A. girl, very city life. She knows the subway stations and the bus stops," Simone said. "So to be able to be removed from this and still be in the same love story, but in a different way, because of the environment and the space and the intention, it was just really fun to dive into that new world." "In that space and in that time for Justin, he was healing, he was kind of going through the breaking of his character," Cooper Jr. added. "[It] really shows that arc of, he's coming into his own self when it comes to experiencing his first heartbreak." "Our first heartbreak really shapes us as people and it defines us in a way that, it shifts our perspective of how we can see the world. And I think that's what you see coming from him." But with all of Akil's work, she really succeeds in layering her stories with a number of different elements. She's giving us an evaluation of class, while looking at the importance of community, and all the specifics within Justin and Keisha's lives. It's through this process that Forever, in addition to Akil's previous projects, feel like robust portrayals of our world. "I'm constantly looking at American culture through the lens of the American dream, and ... is it really in our favour," Akil said. "And I think you see a lot of my characters trying to reach this idyllic American dream, but yet they are examining and questioning. Is this really my dream?" "And class is so much more of an issue and a challenge in our country than race is, and ... I really want to unpack that so that we can see ourselves. And then from that place we can decide what steps we want to take in preparing that, fixing that, or even giving ourselves grace about where we are in our life. ... A lot of us are marching to the same place, and I want us to march in that way that is true to us."
