NEED TO KNOW
Prime Video released the first trailer for Sterling Point, its latest YA drama series
Sterling Point stars Ella Rubin, Keen Ruffalo and Jay Duplass
Season one of Sterling Point premieres on August 5th
Photo Credit: Prime
Prime Video continues its evolution as the spiritual successor to The CW with the upcoming release of its latest YA drama, Sterling Point, an original coming-of-age series set in rural Canada.
The streamer dropped the first trailer for the drama on July 9, offering fans an extended look at the series before its August 5th premiere.
What is Sterling Point about?
The series centers on Annie and Connor Jacobson, 17-year-old twins who are raised in New York City by their adoptive father, Steven, who took custody after their mother passed away. The story kicks off when the twins inherit Sterling Point, an island in Canada, from a grandfather they were never close to.
Annie and Connor decide to spend their summer at Sterling Point to learn more about their own family. Once on the island, Annie encounters Ramona, a teenager who resembles her late mother and claims to be the island’s rightful owner through her grandfather.
What follows is a shared unraveling of mysteries and family history that helps Annie better understand her family's past while forcing everyone involved to confront long-hidden secrets.
And of course, no YA drama would be complete without a complicated love triangle, which in this case is between Annie and Ellis, a blue-collar local who spent his entire life on the island, and Rory, a newcomer from a wealthy family.
Who stars in Sterling Point?
Ella Rubin (Anora, Until Dawn) and Keen Ruffalo (Task, Hal & Harper) lead the series as twins Annie and Connor. Ruffalo is the son of Academy Award-winning actor Mark Ruffalo and his wife, Sunrise Coigney.
Amélie Hoeferle (The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) stars as Ramona, Annie’s frenemy.
Love triangle duties are handled by dueling dreamboats Jacob Whiteduck-Lavoie (First Line) and Daniel Quinn-Toye (Pressure)
Responsible adults will be played by Jay Duplass (Industry), as the twins' adoptive dad, Steven, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan (The Walking Dead) as the mysterious Joe.
Is Sterling Point based on a book?
No, while it appears to share DNA with many other YA book adaptations on the surface, Sterling Point is an entirely original drama series. It was created by director and actress Megan Park, who previously directed the feature films My Old Ass and The Fall Out.
She’s working with producers Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, who are responsible for teen-drama classics including The OC and Gossip Girl.
Prime Video is the home for Young Adult drama
While every streamer takes on its own identity, Prime Video has struggled for years to differentiate itself in a crowded field. The streamer has launched hits with cultural relevance, such as The Boys and Reacher, but it lacked a cohesive brand identity.
The massive success of The Summer I Turned Pretty drove Prime Video to expand its slate of Young Adult dramas, which currently includes Off Campus, Motorheads, and We Were Liars
Sterling Point appears to repackage the attributes that helped those shows succeed, including a young and attractive ensemble cast, romantic intrigue and a coming-of-age mystery, all brought to the screen by a creative team responsible for some of the defining shows in the genre.
All eight episodes of season one of Sterling Point will debut on Prime Video on August 5th.
Whether Sterling Point can become a breakout hit like The Summer I Turned Pretty remains to be seen, but it's clear that Prime Video wants to be the destination for fans of YA dramas.
Prime Video is also expanding its action slate with the Reacher spinoff Neagley.
