‘Sweet Valley High’ Movie Still in the Works, Diablo Cody Says

If you were a preteen female in the 80’s and 90’s, then the names “Elizabeth” and “Jessica” totally mean something to you together.

If you weren’t, they were the twin teenage girl protagonists of the seemingly endless book series Sweet Valley High. And if you’re still a closet fan (or an out one) then you’ve probably heard that the series is being rebooted for the big screen, penned by none other than Diablo Cody. (Cody was behind the breakthrough teen pregnancy hit Juno.)

Sweet Valley High fans have been eagerly awaiting news of the franchise’s development, which has unfortunately seemed to languish in development hell since the announcement was made a while back. While the lack of reasonably paced forward movement seems to be a bad sign even for hotly anticipated projects like the Sweet Valley High movie, Cody insists that the film is marching forward. The screenwriter tells Indiewire:

“[Sweet Valley High] is moving forward. I need to talk to the producers and see how much I can say about it. It’s closer to reality than ever but I can’t freely talk about it.”

Cody continues:

“I want it to be wonderfully nostalgic… I want it to be to the ’80s what ‘American Graffiti’ was to the [early] ’60s. I want it to be looking back on a really cool time and enjoying yourself and I want it to be glamorous and colorful and bubblegum and a feast for the senses. That’s my plan.”

A release date has not yet been discussed for Sweet Valley High.