Insider Is Netflix series the new Girls?
THE higher-ups at Netflix (probably) didn’t schedule the release of Girlboss five days after the final episode of HBO series Girls. But they couldn’t have timed it better.
In many ways, Girlboss could be seen as a spiritual successor. Its lead is a character in her early 20s who can be every bit as abrasive as Hannah and co. It’s also about finding yourself in those early adult years when the world tries to shove you into a neat little responsible box.
Based on Nasty Gal founder Sophia Amoruso’s autobiography of the same name, the series is a “loose” retelling of Amoruso’s founding of her online fashion empire barely a decade ago.
Amoruso started the business in 2006 out of her apartment in San Francisco when she resold vintage pieces on eBay before launching her own website. At one point, her personal fortune was estimated at over $US280 million.
But late last year, while in Australia for a speaking engagement, it was announced Nasty Gal would file for bankruptcy, an experience Amoruso says could make for a great storyline in “season five”.
It must be a surreal experience for Amoruso, seeing herself depicted on screen by Britt Robertson, knowing that the character will be seen by some as kind of bratty and entitled.
“I’m beyond happy,” Amoruso says. “The show is so good. I try to remove myself from the fact that it’s based on my life and just watch it as a comedy. I watch it like any other show which is a really hard thing to convince anybody. You have to give up a certain amount of control when something like this happens in your life.”
There are many layers to “Sophia” on the show, who can be naive and infuriating but also driven and spunky.
Girlboss creator Kay Cannon (Pitch Perfect, 30 Rock) says: “I’m a little culpable of this as well, suggesting that Sophia is an unlikeable person, because she’s not. She is likeable, and she’s fun and she’s vulnerable and she cries and she loves her dad and she wants to make him proud. She’s just lost and it manifests sometimes in anger, but that doesn’t mean she’s not likeable.”
Girlboss’ journey to the screen began with Charlize Theron after someone gave her Amoruso’s book. Through her production company, Denver and Delilah, Theron brought Cannon on board and then secured the rights to the tome.
Girlboss is available to stream on Netflix now.