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Netflix is turning Katherine Center’s hit romance The Bodyguard into a new holiday rom-com, with Leighton Meester and Jared Padalecki set to lead the cast. The film will reimagine Center’s bestselling novel as a Christmas-set love story between a no-nonsense bodyguard and the movie star she’s hired to protect.
From BookTok Favorite to Holiday Romance
Originally published in 2022, The Bodyguard quickly became a comfort-read favorite, cementing Center as a go-to voice for warm, character-driven romance. Netflix officially optioned the book in 2024, extending its romance streak after adapting Center’s earlier novel Happiness for Beginners into a 2023 film that performed strongly with streaming audiences.
The new movie will carry a different title, still to be announced, but will keep the core setup: a practical, tough-as-nails bodyguard assigned to an A-list action star. Director Elizabeth Allen Rosenbaum, who also helmed Netflix’s Happiness for Beginners, returns to steer the adaptation, with a script by Erin Cardillo and Richard Keith. Production is slated to begin in Canada in December 2025, positioning the film perfectly for a future holiday release window.
Starry Cast and Reader Involvement
Meester and Padalecki are joined by Andie MacDowell, country star Walker Hayes in his acting debut, Noah Lalonde, and Toby Sandeman. It’s a blend of familiar faces and fresh talent that taps directly into the book’s mix of cozy charm and celebrity sparkle, a hallmark of Center’s storytelling across novels like How to Walk Away and Things You Save in a Fire.[1]
In a move sure to delight readers, Meester, Padalecki, and Center have invited fans to help brainstorm the movie’s new title via Instagram. The collaborative approach mirrors the intense online enthusiasm that has surrounded Center’s work, especially on BookTok, and echoes the broader boom in contemporary romance adaptations, from Center’s own backlist to projects like Ali Hazelwood’s The Love Hypothesis.[2]
For romance readers, this is another sign that Netflix is committed to building a slate of feel-good, book-based love stories, with Center emerging as one of its cornerstone authors. With production on The Bodyguard adaptation locked for late 2025 and the creative team openly courting fans, contemporary romance lovers have plenty of time to read (or re-read) the novel before sparks start flying on screen.
