Fresh off the release of her new movie, Don’t Say Good Luck, author Laura Hankin is ready to start another chapter with her latest novel, The Sidekick — and Us has the exclusive first look at the cover.
The Sidekick, out next spring, follows Lou and Cassidy, two characters in a rom-com screenplay. While Cassidy is ready for her close-up — and her happily ever after — her trusty best friend Lou is patiently waiting in the wings.
Through twists and turns, Lou suddenly finds herself in the real world — and becomes a wingwoman for grieving widower Tom, whose late wife never got to finish the screenplay Lou came from. As she starts getting to know Tom, however, Lou can’t help but wonder if she could be a leading lady who deserves a happy ending after all.
“With The Sidekick, I wanted to write a fizzy, fun homage to rom-coms like How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and Enchanted, this time centering the loyal best friend who’s always there to listen to the heroine’s problems. (Justice for Judy Greer, the queen of these roles!),” Hankin exclusively tells Us.
She adds, “But I also wanted to acknowledge the reality of living and loving in the real world, where the news is scarier, the rats are bigger, and the fact that love is so easily lost makes it even more precious.”
The Sidekick is a seamless addition to Hankin’s already beloved catalog, which includes One-Star Romance and Happy & You Know It, among others.
This year, Hankin also brought her talent from the page to the screen with Don’t Say Good Luck. She penned the screenplay for the heartwarming movie, which hit Netflix on Friday, August 14.
Sunny Sandler stars as Sophie, a 16-year-old theater kid preparing for her shining moment as the lead of her high school production of Waitress while also navigating her mother’s (Melanie Lynskey) cancer battle.
Max Greenfield, Jack Champion and Stephanie Beatriz round out the cast, along with Bebe Neuwirth and Adam Sandler’s longtime BFF Steve Buscemi.
The story hits close to home for Hankin, who was starring in her school’s Moby Dick musical when her mom’s terminal cancer returned. She died just weeks after the performances wrapped.
“I didn’t really know how to process it all until years later, when I started thinking about this as a screenplay,” Hankin shared in a recent interview with Decider, noting that there are some key differences between the story she wrote and the version she lived. “I wanted to find that balance of honoring my mom, honoring the theater community that was so wonderful to be a part of, while also making the best movie that we could.”
Hankin went on to praise Sunny — a rising star in the Sandler family, who helped produce the film.
“I think she built something that is going to just blow people away,” Hankin gushed. “She’s so good in it in every way, with the comedy, and the drama, and the music.”
Hankin’s new novel, The Sidekick, hits shelves April 20, 2027. Don’t Say Good Luck is available to stream on Netflix.
