Originally,Conversations With Friendswas going to be a movie.
But something wasn’t right.
So following in the footsteps ofNormal People, they set out to adapt another of Rooney’s books.
Joe Alwyn and Alison Oliver on ‘Normal People’.Enda Bowe/Hulu
And they knew casting would be key.
“The bigger the cast, the harder it is,” says Abrahamson.
“You have four people that have to work together.
you’ve got the option to’t really cast anybody until you cast everybody.”
Ultimately, they fell in love with newcomer Alison Oliver through a self-tape.
“When I read her, I loved her,” Oliver says of Frances.
“I just thought she was so ballsy and brave and kind of reckless.
But she also has this directness and aloofness, in a way.
I think she’s someone who’s actually very lost.
“Joe [Alwyn] came in pretty quickly and is just beautiful as an actor.
Thankfully, Lane and Kirke were able to exude that energy even within the confines of a Zoom.
“Sasha has extraordinary charisma.
When she and Alison Zoom-read together, you could just tell they loved it,” says Abrahamson.
“Similarly with Melissa, when Alison auditioned with Jemima, Jemima was so strong and cold and cutting.
She brings that edgy kind of energy.”
“How is it going to cut through otherwise?
Our hunch was to make it about being a bit quieter.
There’s something really striking about that for people if they’re used to the noise.”
For Abrahamson, that’s the beauty of adapting Rooney’s work.
Its power is in the quietness of the moments, the easiness of the story.
“And the beautiful thing about television is that you get to do that over a long period.
Conversations With Friendshits Hulu on May 15.
