Rose Byrne’s Dollhouse Pictures to Adapt Bri Lee’s Bestselling Novel ‘The Work’ for Television

Australian actress Rose Byrne’s production company, Dollhouse Pictures, has secured the screen rights to Bri Lee’s bestselling novel The Work, with plans to adapt the acclaimed Australian romance for television.

Announced on November 5, the project will be developed by the Sydney-based production collective, which was co-founded by Byrne, Krew Boylan, Shannon Murphy and Jessica Carrera.

Australian screenwriter and director Hannah Lehmann has been tapped to create the adaptation, with Lee and Carrera serving as executive producers. The project is currently in development with support from Screen Australia.

Published by Allen & Unwin in 2024, The Work follows two ambitious young professionals attempting to establish themselves in the competitive contemporary art world.

Set across New York, Brisbane and Sydney, the novel centres on Lally, an aspiring New York gallerist, and Patrick, a junior antiques appraiser based in Sydney.

After an immediate attraction sparks a turbulent long-distance relationship, the pair must navigate the increasingly complicated intersection of their personal and professional lives.

As their careers become more entangled, questions of ambition, privilege and the sacrifices demanded by success threaten to undermine their relationship.

For Dollhouse Pictures, the adaptation offers an opportunity to explore contemporary relationships through the lens of an industry where artistic expression and commercial value frequently collide.

“I’ve always admired Bri Lee’s writing and her willingness to question power, privilege and the institutions that shape us,” Carrera said in a statement.

“What excites me about The Work is its seductive world, where everything has a value and the rules are constantly shifting.”

Carrera also praised Lehmann’s involvement, describing the writer as bringing a sharp and assured voice to the adaptation.

Lee expressed her enthusiasm for the project, describing the opportunity to bring her novel to television as a natural extension of its storytelling.

“I am so excited that The Work has found a production and writing team that are committed to making this show properly gutsy, hella sexy, and seriously funny,” Lee said.

“This novel was always so cinematic in my head, and Dollhouse Pictures is going to take the words off the page and build a magnetic, can’t-look-away spectacle.”

The adaptation marks another significant screen project for Lehmann, whose previous credits include the award-winning Snapchat original series Two Sides.

Lehmann created and directed all three seasons of the series, which attracted more than 1.2 million subscribers on Snapchat. Her work has earned recognition from the Australian Director’s Guild, as well as the Webby and Streamy awards.

For Lee, the announcement follows a successful transition from nonfiction into literary fiction.

The Australian author first gained prominence with her 2018 memoir Eggshell Skull, followed by Beauty and Who Gets to Be Smart.

Her debut novel, The Work, became an Australian bestseller and was longlisted for the Indie Book Awards’ debut fiction prize. She subsequently published her second novel, Seed, in 2025.

Dollhouse Pictures, established in 2015, has built its reputation around female-led storytelling and unconventional creative voices.

The company’s debut feature, Seriously Red, starred co-founder Krew Boylan as a woman pursuing an unlikely career as a Dolly Parton impersonator.

With Byrne, Murphy, Boylan and Carrera continuing to develop projects across film, television and animation, The Workjoins the collective’s growing slate of Australian stories intended for international audiences.

The screen rights were negotiated through United Talent Agency, which represents Lee alongside literary agent Grace Heifetz at a4 Literary.

Screen Australia’s recently announced development funding will support the project as the creative team works to bring the novel’s characters and contemporary art-world setting to the screen.

Casting, a streaming or broadcast partner, and a production timeline have yet to be announced.