Amazon MGM Studios is expanding its scripted slate with the development of Playing the Field, a new series based on Meryl Wilsner’s bestselling sports romance novel Cleat Cute.
Sarah Tapscott, known for her work on The Sex Lives of College Girls, is set to lead the project as writer, executive producer, and showrunner. The production gains significant creative and athletic authenticity with sports legends Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe joining the executive producer roster via their production banner, A Touch More.
Designed as a vibrant ensemble comedy, Cleat Cute adaptation dives into the “sexy, messy, and exciting” lives of players on a professional New Orleans women’s soccer team, Crescent City. At its heart is the electric “will-they-won’t-they” dynamic between newly drafted phenom Phoebe Matthews and the seasoned team captain, Grace Henderson.
This project taps into the surging global appetite for high-stakes sports narratives, following the massive success of Heated Rivalry that have recently dominated both the publishing and streaming worlds. By bringing Meryl Wilsner’s celebrated queer perspective to the screen, Amazon MGM aims to deliver a modern, inclusive look at the intense pressures and romantic entanglements found on and off the pitch.
