Peacock waited three years, and has finally ordered Kennedy Ryan's Before I Let Go to series
After three years in development, Peacock has finally handed a series order to a drama adaptation of Kennedy Ryan’s Before I Let Go from a much-loved filmmaker.
Here we go: after a good long stretch on the back burner, Before I Let Go — that’s the adaptation of Kennedy Ryan’s best-selling 2022 novel — has finally been ordered to series over at Peacock. You’d almost forgotten it was even in development, wouldn’t you? Three years of “are we doing this, or aren’t we” and at last they’ve made it official.
Bringing the Skyland series to television is a dream come true, and working alongside this visionary team to introduce these characters to a broader audience is beyond thrilling.
That’s Ryan herself, gushing in the trade press about seeing her Skyland series make the jump from page to screen, and to be honest, it’s the sort of thing you’d say after waiting this long for a project to finally move. And if you’re a fan of the novel, it’s probably a relief to see movement at all.
The Team Behind It
So, here’s how the creative side shapes up: Malcolm D. Lee — best known for Girls Trip and The Best Man Holiday, both genuine crowd-pleasers — is not just producing, he co-wrote the pilot with Ryan. The showrunners attached are Attica and Tembi Locke (ring a bell? They did From Scratch for Netflix), so we’re getting some experienced hands handling the day-to-day, not novices. Lee’s Blackmaled Productions is executive producing, joined by Dominique Telson, Debra Martin Chase, Mike Jackson, and yes, John Legend on the credits list. Which, if nothing else, should ensure a proper soundtrack.
Before I Let Go spent three years in development limbo before finally getting the greenlight at Peacock in 2026.
Peacock first grabbed this in early 2023, but it’s only now they’re formally commissioning episodes — a marathon, not a sprint, which is fairly typical when a big name and a hot IP are involved. That also means, for now, there’s still nothing locked down for casting or a proper release date. All hush-hush on that front.
The Story: Second Chances in Atlanta
The basic setup: Yasmen and Josiah Wade are a divorced couple doing the whole “amicable co-parenting” thing in Atlanta — except, inevitably, the feelings between them haven’t properly disappeared. After a series of traumas that broke up the marriage, Yasmen is rebuilding her life, but she and Josiah just can’t seem to keep it strictly business. The adaptation promises to dig into whether these two can actually get back together, or if they’ll just keep circling the same old heartbreak. Romantic drama, but with a grown-up edge and—if the source material’s anything to go by—more than a few curveballs.
- Before I Let Go is actually the first of three Skyland novels from Ryan. The follow-ups are This Could Be Us and Can’t Get Enough, so if this goes well, expect potential for more seasons.
The production is a joint effort between Universal Global Television and Universal Television, presumably to keep all the moving parts under one roof. And for anyone keeping score, Malcolm D. Lee previously worked with Peacock on The Best Man: The Final Chapters, so nobody’s having to make intros around the table.
When’s it out? Who’s in it? None of that’s been announced yet. Typical at this early stage — but at least this time, it’s officially on the way.