‘Love, Simon’ Spinoff Series Pulled From Disney Plus, Moved to Hulu With New Title

Disney+ has removed the Love, Simon spinoff series from its upcoming slate of new content. The series, a spinoff the 2018 LGBTQ+ romance film, will instead debut on Hulu in June, LGBTQ+ Pride month, under the new title Love, Victor. First reported by Variety, sources allege that the sudden change of streaming platform was due to the series not being “family-friendly.”

“Disney felt many issues explored on the show, including alcohol use and sexual exploration, would not fit in with the family-friendly content on Disney Plus,” the outlet states.

Hulu, of course, is home to many other young adult series, including PEN15 and the recently-debuted adaptation of John Green’s Looking for Alaska.

Love, Victor‘s move from Disney+ to Hulu mirrors the recent move of the Zoe Kravitz-starring series High Fidelity, a series that explored issues that may not be suitable for families.

Based on the critically accaimed 2018 film, which in turn was based on Becky Albertalli’s novel Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, Love, Victor will be run by the film’s writers, Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker, who will also remain on their other show, This Is Us.

The spinoff will follow Victor (Michael Cimino), a new student at Creekwood High School, the same school in the 2018 film on a journey of self-discovery, facing challenges at home, adjusting to his new surroundings and learning about his sexual orientation. When all the change seems overwhelming, the boy reaches out to Simon to help navigate his way through his high school years.

Along with Cimino, the series also stars Rachel Naomi Wilson as Mia, Victor’s friend, and Sophia Bush as Veronica, Mia’s father’s new girlfriend.

“Love, Victor is funny, heartfelt and deeply affecting, and we were incredibly taken with the project,” Craig Erwich, the senior vice president of original productions at Hulu, said in a statement, according to Pink News. “The show’s contemporary lens and honest storytelling make it a perfect fit for the millions of fans on Hulu who already watch and see themselves in series like Looking For Alaska, Pen15, and Grown-ish.”

The 10-episode first season of Love, Victor is slated for a June 2019 premiere on Hulu, though an exact date has not yet been revealed. It is said that the streaming service has opened a writer’s room to begin fleshing out details for a second season of the series.