We finally know who will be starring in Hulu’s Looking for Alaska series
We’ve been waiting for the screen adaptation of John Green’s bestselling novel Looking for Alaska for years. And since we learned that a Hulu series based on the book is in the works, it’s been even harder to resist mentally casting the roles of Alaska Young and Miles “Pudge” Halter. Now, the wait is over because Looking for Alaska has officially found its stars.
Green shared the news on social media today, October 30th, revealing that Kristine Froseth will take on the titular role of Alaska, while Charlie Plummer will play Miles. The author made sure to reiterate that he did not control the casting process, but he did say that he felt the young actors “embody the characters.” He also wrote that he has been in contact with Plummer and Froseth.
"I spoke to Kristine and Charlie on the phone yesterday and it was really special to have a conversation with the people who will become Miles and Alaska," Green tweeted. "I'm so grateful to them and to everyone involved with the Looking for Alaska series. It's all starting to feel very real!"
I am so grateful that LFA has an enthusiastic readership all these years after its publication. I know people have strong casting opinions, but I'd ask you to remember that the people who've been cast are human beings (and young ones), so please be kind if/when tagging them.
— John Green (@johngreen) October 30, 2018
(Also, a friendly reminder that I do not cast movies or limited series adaptations on Hulu. But I did get to see both of these actors' auditions, and they are both truly brilliant and embody the characters to me. They're both also fans of the book, which is nice!)
— John Green (@johngreen) October 30, 2018
In the Looking for Alaska @hulu series, Alaska will be played by Kristine Froseth (kristine_froseth on instagram), and Miles will be played by Charlie Plummer (@charliefplummer here and on instagram–but mostly on instagram).
— John Green (@johngreen) October 30, 2018
I spoke to Kristine and Charlie on the phone yesterday and it was really special to have a conversation with the people who will become Miles and Alaska. I'm so grateful to them and to everyone involved with the Looking for Alaska series. It's all starting to feel very real!
— John Green (@johngreen) October 30, 2018
Neither Froseth nor Plummer are household names (yet), but you might recognize their faces.Froseth starred in the Netflix movie Sierra Burgess Is a Loser as popular girl Veronica, while Plummer has appeared in All the Money in the World and Boardwalk Empire. He also starred in the 2018 drama Lean on Pete, about a boy rescuing an aging racehorse from the slaughterhouse. Green wrote in his tweets that both actors are fans of the book, so we’re optimistic about the future of this series.
On Instagram, Froseth wrote that she was “beyond honored to be bringing Alaska to life.”
Plummer echoed the sentiment, writing that he has “loved this novel and these characters for years.”
Bringing Alaska to the screen has been a long journey. As Time reported, the rights to the book were initially optioned shortly after its 2005 publication, but production never got under way. In 2014, Paramount signed on filmmaker Sarah Polley to develop the screenplay, but, again, the project fell through. Earlier this year, the Hulu series was announced, with director Josh Schwartz (the man behind The OC and Gossip Girl) attached.
We’re so excited to see Looking for Alaska hit our TV screens, and we’re sure that Froseth and Plummer will do a fantastic job. Now, if only we can get a release date.
