Apple Developing Rebecca Serle’s ‘Once and Again’ Film

Apple is betting big on romance again. Apple Original Films has locked down the rights to Once and Again, the forthcoming novel from New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Serle, and is developing it as a feature film.

The project is in early development, with Liz Tigelaar set to adapt the screenplay. Tigelaar is known for steering high-profile literary adaptations including Tiny Beautiful Things and Little Fires Everywhere, making her a natural fit for Serle’s emotionally layered, time-bending love story.

A Time-Travel Romance With Generational Stakes

Published March 10 by Atria Books, Once and Again marks Serle’s fourth novel with the imprint. The story has been described as The Time Traveler’s Wife meets The Lakehouse, blending sweeping romance with a touch of magical realism.

The novel follows Lauren Novak, a Malibu native who traded the beach for a carefully curated life and marriage in Los Angeles. When her relationship begins to fracture and her husband takes a summer job in New York, Lauren returns to Malibu—and to a family secret that reshapes everything she thought she knew.

The women in the Novak family are each granted a single chance to turn back time. Lauren’s mother once used hers to save her future husband from a fatal accident. Now, at 37 and grappling with fertility struggles and a strained marriage, Lauren must decide whether she will use her own “once and again” moment—and what it might cost.

Complicating matters is the return of Stone, her first love and the boy who broke her heart more than a decade earlier. As past and present collide on the Malibu shoreline, Lauren faces an impossible question: is there one right moment to change your fate?

Apple Doubles Down on Book Adaptations

The film will be produced by Lee Eisenberg and Natalie Sandy for Piece of Work Entertainment under their overall deal with Apple. Serle will also serve as a producer, alongside David Stone for TFC.

The move adds to Apple’s growing list of literary adaptations, following major projects like its sweeping deal for Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere universe. It also arrives amid a continued boom in romance on screen, with recent adaptations such as Colleen Hoover’s Verity drawing major star power.

There are no casting announcements yet, and the film remains in early development. But with Tigelaar adapting and Serle producing, the project signals fresh momentum for romance with a speculative twist.

For readers who fell in love with Serle’s In Five Years, this adaptation could mark the author’s biggest leap to screen yet. Now the only question is whether audiences are ready to relive one perfect moment—once and again.