The Chicken Sisters Adaptation Coming to Hallmark

MarVista Entertainment, Lighthouse Pictures and Busy B Entertainment have begun production on an adaptation of K.J. Dell’Antonia’s The Chicken Sisters for Hallmark.

From showrunner and executive producer Annie Mebane (Shrinking, Atypical), the eight-part family drama takes place in the south, where a generations-old rift between rival fried chicken restaurants has left the owners’ families fractured and the locals taking sides. When a popular cooking competition show comes to town, it could be what is needed to end the feud once and for all.

The adaptation is set to star Schuyler Fisk (Sam & Kate, Orange County), Genevieve Angelson (The Handmaid’s Tale, Good Girls Revolt), Lea Thompson (Switched at Birth, Back to the Future) and Wendie Malick (Young Sheldon, Shrinking, Just Shoot Me!).

Mebane, Bradley Larry Grimaldi, Ani Kevork, Hannah Pillemer, Fernando Szew, Shawn Williamson and Jamie Goehring are executive producing the series. FOX Entertainment Global will be handling international distribution.

“Annie Mebane blew us away with her vision for The Chicken Sisters—her unique spin and enthusiasm for this fried chicken feud had us excited from day one,” said Lisa Hamilton Daly, executive VP of programming at Hallmark Media. “And talk about a dream cast! Schuyler, Genevieve, Lea and Wendie are the perfect actors to lead this witty and heartfelt story. We are confident that each episode is going leave our viewers craving more and more.”

“When I read The Chicken Sisters by KJ Dell’Antonia, I fell in love with these characters,” Mebane said. “On the surface, the show is about two restaurants competing on a reality show, but it’s about the baggage we pass down through the generations and learning to unpack it. I love telling this multigenerational story focused on women: their frustrations, their desires and, ultimately, their healing. We’ve assembled an incredible cast, and we can’t wait to welcome audiences to Merinac.”