Patrick Schwarzenegger is to star as Gus opposite Phoebe Dynevor’s January in “Beach Read.”

The film is an adaptation of the 2020 book of the same name by Emily Henry, author of “People We Meet on Vacation.”

Yulin Kuang, screenwriter for “People We Meet on Vacation,” will direct “Beach Read” and write the script. 

She posted about the casting on Instagram, “‘Patrick is a slow burn,’ is what I wrote in my notes after meeting him for the first time. There was something about the way he talked about his feelings on love and romance that I couldn’t forget.”

The novel centers on January, a romance writer, and Gus, a literary fiction author, both struggling with different kinds of loss. The rivals swap genres for the summer while living in neighboring beach houses. Built around enemies-to-lovers tension and a forced-proximity setup, the story became a breakout hit and established Henry as a star in modern rom-com fiction.

Schwarzenegger shared the announcement on his Instagram page. 

He captioned it, “I’m so excited for this!!! First – let me say thank you to @emilyhenrywrites for the opportunity! I will do everything possible to make the fans happy & proud and bring your brilliant writing to life. PS- my wife is obsessed with you!”

He also said he couldn’t wait to work with Dynevor and thanked Kuang for her direction about the characters. 

The 32-year-old starred in the most recent season of “The White Lotus.”

Emily Henry has several other adaptations in the works. Here’s what’s next.

About the writer

Daisy Horowitz has been an arts & features writer for nearly 15 years. When she’s not covering culture, she’s building miniature dioramas, knitting something cozy or experimenting with homemade mustard or the occasional ambitious kitchen project. She also reads—a lot—and counts “Beach Read” among her favorite Emily Henry novels.