White sandy dunes, red cliffs, warm water, and salty air: Carley Fortune’s This Summer Will Be Different brings to life idyllic summers spent on Canada’s Prince Edward Island. And now the bestselling novel is becoming a TV show.
This Summer Will Be Different is a simmering, sun-soaked romance set across multiple summers. The romance series follows Lucy, a young woman navigating her 20s and her first real love — with her best friend’s brother, the one person she was never supposed to fall for.
“I fell in love with Prince Edward Island first in the pages of L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables and again when I visited with my best friend in my early 20s,” Fortune tells Netflix. “That vacation, the beauty of the island, the warmth of its people, and the friendships that sustain us are the foundation of This Summer Will Be Different. I’m thrilled to bring this sweeping love story to the screen with Netflix and to transport audiences to the glittering shores and windswept beaches of PEI.”
The 10-episode series will be filmed in Toronto and on PEI, and it was created by Dane Clark (Suze, One More Time) and Linsey Stewart (Workin’ Moms, North of North). It’s executive produced by Clark, Stewart, Fortune (Every Summer After, Our Perfect Storm), and Jennifer Kawaja (Sort Of, Wayward) and Elise Cousineau (Cardinal, Small Achievable Goals) for Sphere Media.
“When Carley first entrusted us with her captivating book, we knew we had to find the right team to deliver [for] her passionate fan base,” say Danielle Woodrow and Tara Woodbury, directors of content for Netflix Canada. “Developing this project with Dane, Linsey, and Sphere has been a dream, and we couldn’t have found better partners to bring this love letter to both Toronto and Prince Edward Island to the screen.”
This Summer Will Be Different joins Netflix’s growing slate of Canadian originals, including North of North, Wayward, Who Killed the Montreal Expos?, The Granville Girls, and more. Since Netflix launched its Canadian slate in 2025, domestic viewing of Canadian content on the service has grown by almost 20 percent. Globally, almost 65 percent of Netflix members watched Canadian content in 2025.
Stay tuned to Tudum for casting, sneak peeks, and more news on This Summer Will Be Different.
