Julia Roberts Thought "Leave the World Behind "Was 'Too Scary,' Recalls Author Rumaan Alam

11/19/2024 12:32 PM

Alam also notes that Roberts and the movie's director-writer Sam Esmail "were good friends"

Julia Roberts had a timid initial reaction to Leave the World Behind. 

On Saturday, Nov. 16, author Rumaan Alam recalled adapting his 2020 apocalyptic novel into a Netflix movie during a Book-to-Screen Adaptations panel presented by Starz at the Texas Book Festival in Austin, Texas. Alam released his latest novel Entitlement on Sept. 17, in which a young woman named Brooke takes a job working for billionaire Asher Jaffee while searching for her place in the world.

During the panel, he revealed that Roberts' first impression of his work was that it was "scary."

The movie – which came out in 2023 – stars Roberts, Mahershala Ali, Ethan Hawke and Myha'la in main roles, was written and directed by Golden Globe winner Sam Esmail.

Alam noted that Esmail had previously worked with Roberts on the psychological television series Homecoming, so "they were good friends." That meant the Oscar winner was on the top of his mind when it came to adapting Alam's novel.

"So, he sent [the book] to her and she said, 'it's too scary,' " the author said. 

Amid the movie's streaming release, Roberts said in a CBS interview that the story's versatility drew her to the project. "Sam [Esmail] calls it a disaster movie. Ethan [Hawke] calls it a thriller. It's both those things," she said. "But to me, it's a story about this family, this husband and wife, who are kind of opposites."

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Speaking to PEOPLE exclusively at the book festival, Alam says having his work adapted for the screen posed some unique challenges.  

"I think it's a very complicated balance from my perspective," he says. "My territory is the book. And the director's territory is the film. So the film ends up being a sort of concrete interpretation of the text that may depart from what I intended, but that's what happens with every reader."

Alam adds, "But ultimately you have control over that reading experience. It behooves the novelist to sort of be clear-eyed about that. And if you feel too possessive of your work, then don't do it. The truth is that it can be lucrative. And that's a significant incentive for a lot of writers."

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He also acknowledges that screen adaptations have the potential to introduce books to a "whole new readership who may not even have been aware that the thing existed as a book."

The author says, "I think that's not a bad thing. It's such a gift as a writer to have any readers. And so whatever's bringing them to you is a gift."