most anticipated YA book adaptations of 2019

2018 has been THE year for YA adaptations, with films such as A Wrinkle in Time and Ready Player One finding huge success at the box office and Netflix's To All the Boys I've Loved Before and Dumplin' also extremely popular with audiences. I myself absolutely loved TATBILB and watched it multiple times shortly after it was released!

I was also lucky enough to see an advanced screening of Love, Simon earlier in the year, which I adored! Both films received critical acclaim for the performances of their lead actors and actresses and were also lauded for their diversity – something not often accurately represented in blockbuster films.

Unfortunately, apart from TATBILB, Love, Simon and Maze Runner: The Death Cure (which we won't talk about), I haven't had the chance to watch any other 2018 YA adaptations yet. But I'm hoping next year will be a different story! Because there are some seriously amazing YA adaptations scheduled for release in 2019! 

*Release dates are correct as at 14/12/18.

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1. A Series of Unfortunate Events – Season 3 returns to Netflix on 1 January

Season 3 will conclude the Netflix adaptation of the popular book series by Lemony Snicket, commencing with Book the Tenth: The Slippery Slope. I really enjoyed the books when I was younger and Neil Patrick Harris as Count Olaf is just the perfect villain!

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2. The Hate U Give – in theatres on 1 January (Australia)

I've been really looking forward to this one, especially since reading the book, and I thought somehow I had missed it. But no, the film just hasn't been released in Australia yet! Someone please explain to me why we have to wait an extra THREE MONTHS???

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3. Chaos Walking – in theatres on 28 February (Australia)

Chaos Walking, the adaptation of The Knife of Letting Go by Patrick Ness, is the latest victim star of the YA dystopia trend. I haven't read the book yet (although it's on my TBR!) but I can only hope that the film franchise is treated better than Divergent was.

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4. Five Feet Apart – in theatres on 22 March (USA)

This one is a bit unusual in that the film isn't actually an adaptation of the book – both were pitched together. The synopsis sounds like it's in a similar vein to The Fault in our Stars, so if that's anything to go by then it's sure to be a box office hit.

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5. After – in theatres on 12 April (USA)

LOL. So I actually read After back in 2013 when it was just a One Direction fanfic uploaded one chapter at a time to Wattpad. It was... not well written. But it wasn't too bad compared to other things online and suffice it to say, I got hooked. And now I'm a teensy bit curious to see what the film is like.

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6. Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists – premieres 13 May (USA)

I am trash so you can guarantee that I will be watching this as soon as it is available in Australia. (Also, I just noticed that the German title of the book literally translates to "lies have long legs" and I thought that was tremendously amusing.)

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7. The Sun is Also a Star – in theatres on 17 May (USA)

The Sun is Also a Star is an adorable romantic contemporary and I think it will translate really well to film! It also features diverse characters so it's exciting to see that more of these types of movies are being made!

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8. Artemis Fowl – in theatres on 28 November (Australia)

I have been waiting for this movie for my entire life so they better have done a good job! Again, though, why does Australia have to wait an extra four months?

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9. All the Bright Places (filming; slated for 2019 release)

All the Bright Places was arguably the biggest YA contemporary novel of 2015 so it's no surprise that it's being adapted into a film. Given some of the negative responses to 13 Reasons Why, I'm interested to see how they will approach the topic of suicide in this movie.

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10. Dragon Rider (filming; slated for 2019 release)

DRAGONS. I used to be obsessed with dragons. And this book is all about a boy who gets to ride a dragon so basically, this was my dream. I had no idea this was being made into a film until very recently but I'm super excited!

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What did you think of the YA adaptations released this year? Are you looking forward to any of the upcoming movies and TV series that I've mentioned? Or do you steer clear of book adaptations altogether?

Niamh, xo.