XO, Kitty creator explains why To All the Boys favourites are missing
The To All the Boys spin-off series is now available to stream on Netflix.
Netflix's latest romcom release has just landed on the streamer and XO, Kitty is a welcome spin-off of the popular To All the Boys I've Loved Before film franchise.
So of course, many fans are wondering whether any of the beloved movies' stars will be reprising their roles in the XO, Kitty cast.
The new show centres on Kitty Song Covey (played by Anna Cathcart), who believes she's the best teen matchmaker of all time but soon realises that when it comes to matters of her own heart, things are much more complicated.
Fans of the film franchise will know Kitty to be Lara Jean (Lana Condor) and Margot's (Janel Parrish) younger sister, who was to thank for getting Lara and Peter Kavinsky (Noah Centineo) together in the first place.
Naturally, viewers are wondering whether Lara Jean and Peter will make an appearance in XO, Kitty but they're nowhere to be seen in the new Netflix series – and for pretty good reason too.
Creator Jenny Han spoke to Netflix's TUDUM about what we can expect from the new show, and revealed why Condor and Centineo's omission from XO, Kitty makes sense.
She explained: "We all fell so deeply in love with Lara Jean and her story. So it felt like the greatest gift to give to Kitty was to let her as a character kind of set off on her own two feet and not put her in the shadow of either of her sisters.
"And Lana and Noah are both off and doing big things. The whole To All the Boys family couldn’t be more proud of them and excited for all the things that come next. We're all excited to see Anna really pick up the mantle and continue Kitty's story."
The new 10-parter focuses on Kitty as she gets accepted into the same international school in Seoul, South Korea as her mother, who she didn't get the chance to know before her death. But her decision to move is one also motivated by her desire to be with long-distance boyfriend Dae (Choi Min-young).
When she arrives though, she gets the shock of her life as she learns Dae has been hiding a major secret from her and now, she must navigate her new surroundings by herself.
As the main character in the series, Kitty is not only the centre of the romcom aspect but the series is also a hilarious coming-of-age tale.
Speaking about the focus of XO, Kitty, Han went on to say: "For us, it was about giving Kitty the chance to really explore her inner self and to offer that peek into what she’s thinking.
"To All the Boys is centred around Lara Jean, and we’re really in her head. Kitty is obviously a side character to that story. So we don’t know what she’s thinking. We could guess, because Kitty definitely wears her emotions and her thoughts on her sleeve, and she says whatever she thinks."
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XO, Kitty will be available to stream on Netflix now. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.
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Authors
Morgan Cormack is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering everything drama-related on TV and streaming. She previously worked at Stylist as an Entertainment Writer. Alongside her past work in content marketing and as a freelancer, she possesses a BA in English Literature.