Geek Girl
Based on	Geek Girl by Holly Smale
Directed by	Declan O'Dwyer
Country of origin	Canada United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	10
Production
Producers	Zoë Rocha Anthony Leo Andrew Rosen
Production companies	RubyRock Pictures Aircraft Pictures Nelvana
Original release
Network	Netflix
Release	30 May 2024 (2024-05-30)

Geek Girl is a British-Canadian ten part television series about an awkward teenager who unexpectedly becomes a model. It is based on the 2013 young adult novel of the same name by Holly Smale. The first season was released on 30 May 2024 on Netflix.

Series summary[edit]

Harriet (Emily Carey) is both physically and socially awkward. Unsure of herself, she is an easy target for the group of school bullies led by Lexi (Mia Jenkins). She finds support in her best friend Nat (Rochelle Harrington), her neighbor and fellow eccentric Toby (Zac Looker), her father Richard (Tim Downie) and stepmother Annabel (Jemima Rooper).

When her class wins a contest to attend London Fashion Week, Harriet accidentally draws the attention of modeling agents Wilbur (Emmanuel Imani) and Betty (Hebe Beardsall). Wilbur offers Harriet a chance at working with Infinity Models, though she refuses unless Nat, who has dreamed of becoming a model, also gets a shot. They skip school and defy Harriet's parents to go to London for the trial.

After coaching and encouragement from supermodel Nick (Liam Woodrum), his aunt, fashion designer Yuji (Sandra Yi Sencindiver), decides that Harriet has what she is looking for and places her in the top spot in her new show, earning Harriet some unpleasant attention from Poppy (Daisy Jelley), Nick's showbiz girlfriend and the former headliner. Harriet does her best to keep all this a secret from Nat, who is not selected for modeling work.

Harriet and Richard sneak off to the first show in Canada without Annabel's knowledge. They hit some snags and Richard loses his job in the chaos, but Harriet pulls through and becomes a success, though Nat and Annabel are both upset when they learn what has been kept from them. Outside of that, things seem to be going smoothly, and Nick and Harriet begin dating. This draws further attacks from Poppy, whose interference leads to things going so wrong during and after a perfume shoot that Harriet decides to quit modeling.

The CEO of Infinity Models, Jude (Sarah Parish), quickly moves Poppy into Harriet's place for the next event. Wilbur does his best to smooth things over with his coworkers, but eventually resigns from the agency in protest. Back at school, Harriet is again harassed by the bullies, but with support from Toby and Nat she finally stands up for herself. Thanks to the efforts of Nick and Wilbur, Yuji is convinced to rehire Harriet, who, with the full support of her friends and family now behind her, decides to give modeling another try. The show is a great success, despite some hiccups, and Harriet at last learns to be comfortable in herself as both a fashion model and a girl geek.

Cast[edit]

• Emily Carey as Harriet Manners
• Sarah Parish as Jude Paignton
• Emmanuel Imani as Wilbur Evans
• Liam Woodrum as Nick Park
• Zac Looker as Toby Pilgrim
• Tim Downie as Richard Manners
• Jemima Rooper as Annabel Manners
• Daisy Jelley as Poppy Hepple-Cartwright
• Rochelle Harrington as Natalie Grey
• Sandra Yi Sencindiver as Yuji Lee
• Mia Jenkins as Lexi
• Alana Boden as Miss Lord
• Madeleine Price as Liv
• Alexandra Chaves as Millie
• Hersha Verity as Maia
• Hebe Beardsall as Betty

Production[edit]

In January 2023, it was announced Netflix had picked up a ten-part adaptation of Holly Smale's Geek Girl from Waterside Studios in association with Nelvana. The project would be a British-Canadian co-production made by RubyRock Pictures and Aircraft Pictures; producers include Zoë Rocha of RubyRock, and Anthony Leo and Andrew Rosen of Aircraft.^[1] It was confirmed Emily Carey would lead the series as Harriet Manners in June 2023. Also joining the cast were Sarah Parish, Emmanuel Imani, Liam Woodrum, Zac Looker, Tim Downie, Jemima Rooper, Daisy Jelley, and Rochelle Harrington.^[2]

Principal photography began in early June 2023 in England before later moving to Canada. Cast and crew were spotted in Ottawa, Canada in July.^[3]

Release and reception[edit]

Netflix released the first season on 30 May 2024 and it reached the top 4 worldwide within two days.^[4] The Guardian's Lucy Mangan, who described herself as a fan of the novels, considered it a good adaptation and said it was "fresh, lively and funny".^[5] Radio Times gave the series three out of five stars, citing a "run-of-the-mill" format and some problems with suspension of disbelief; reviewer Tilly Pearce said the heart of the series lies in the characters' relationships, and also praised the soundtrack, in the end calling it "a feel-good, cosy watch" that should please book lovers.^[6]

Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter said it was "a likably wholesome, generally low-stakes YA fairy tale" and especially enjoyed Carey's performance, though he pointed out some over-reliance on safe, familiar tropes and repetitive visuals. He said that Harriet Manners is clearly coded as neurodivergent, but that the show resists applying any such labels to her;^[7] the BBC review from Annabel Rackham noted that both Carey and Smale are autistic and called neurodiverse representation an "important aspect" of the show.^[8]

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Geek Girl at IMDb
• Geek Girl on Netflix Official site