Being Erica to be remade for American TV


ABC is developing an American version of CBC's Being Erica with Toronto's Temple Street Productions, which originated the series.

Maggie Friedman -- who's written for Eastwick, Once & Again and Dawson's Creek -- will write and executive produce the U.S. version.

The decision to remake the series is slightly strange, as Being Erica already has a following in the States on ABC's SoapNet.

When I spoke with star Erin Karpluk in the spring, she told me why she thinks the series caught on with American fans.

"The one feedback that I continue to get from people is that, regardless of where you're at in your life -- if you’re male or your female, if you’re older or your younger – everyone relates to the idea of having regrets," she said. "Because we all have them. So there’s maybe something identifiable to Erica’s journey that other people can relate to."

Now Karpluk says she wishes the American version well, and even has a few ideas of how it could be changed up.

"I would be really excited to see how somebody else would do an interpretation of this story," she says. "In the back of my head, I've always thought if anyone was to redo this show, I'd like to see how it would change if it was a man."

In Canada, Being Erica just wrapped its third season, with a decision on season four not expected until the new year.

And though she wouldn't rule out the possibility, Karpluk isn't sure she'd be down to star in the American version.

"It would be entirely dependent on the network," she says. "But I'm very fond of the show that we created ... I don't know if that would be strange or not."