Disney Live Action has picked up the film rights to Divine Rivals, Rebecca Ross’s fantasy romance about two rival journalists who fall for each other through a magical connection. Deadline broke the news on Tuesday, and the studio is developing the book as a feature film.
The book has already had one Hollywood life. Paramount won the rights in June 2025 after a bidding war, with To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before writer Sofia Alvarez attached to adapt it. That version was still in development when Skydance’s takeover of Paramount closed in August 2025, and the rights eventually lapsed. Disney moved in after that.
A New Writer, The Same Producers
Disney did not inherit Paramount’s development work, so a new screenwriter is being brought on. The original producers are staying, though. Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Pouya Shahbazian remain attached to produce, while Ross will executive produce alongside Stephen Shafer.
Inside Disney, the project sits with SVP of Production Allison Erlikhman, who reports to Disney Live Action President Daria Cercek. Clare Reeth and Emily Dayton handled the rights deal for the studio, and Katherine Curtis of New Leaf Literary & Media brokered it for Ross.
Deadline framed the purchase as part of Disney Live Action’s push into original franchise material. It is also one of several book adaptations moving through the company right now, including at FX, where Elgin James is adapting S.A. Cosby’s King of Ashes.
What Divine Rivals Is About
Divine Rivals is the first book in Ross’s Letters of Enchantment series. It arrived in April 2023, and the sequel, Ruthless Vows, followed that December. The story follows two rival journalists while a war between gods spills into the human world. Their rivalry turns into something else through a magical connection, and the two of them ultimately have to face the depths of hell to seal their fate.
The books have serious numbers behind them. Divine Rivals has sold more than one million copies and spent 104 weeks on the New York Times Young Adult Best Seller list. Ruthless Vows debuted at No. 1 on that list in January 2024, has spent 42 weeks there and has sold more than 500,000 copies. The series has also built a big following on TikTok, especially in the BookTok community.
No director, cast or release date has been announced. The next step is hiring a new writer, so the movie is still at the very start of development at Disney.
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