South Jersey Town Stars in Comedy Series

WILDWOOD, NJ –One South Jersey shore town is getting the Hollywood treatment. Lisa McGee, the BAFTA Award-winning creator behind the acclaimed series Derry Girls, is bringing Wildwood, New Jersey to the small screen in a new comedy series for FX and 20th Television.

The project, titled Wildwood, emerged victorious from what industry insiders describe as a highly competitive bidding situation among networks and studios. McGee will serve as both creator and executive producer for the series, which has been greenlit for development.

Set during the summer of 2000, the comedy follows a group of Irish college students who arrive in Wildwood with little more than ambition and naivety. The young women have no money, no visas, no plan, and no clue—but they're ready to take on what the series describes as the neon playground of the Jersey Shore.

The show represents McGee's first project set outside the United Kingdom and serves as a spiritual successor to Derry Girls, her breakout hit about Irish schoolgirls navigating adolescence in mid-1990s Northern Ireland. That semi-autobiographical series, which premiered in 2018, became Channel 4's biggest comedy launch since 2004 and ran for three seasons, collecting Best Comedy honors at the BAFTAs, International Emmys, and Irish Film and Television Awards.

For Wildwood residents and frequent visitors, the series promises to capture the unique character of the shore destination during the turn of the millennium—a time when the boardwalk's neon lights, beach culture, and summer job economy drew young people from around the world.

Carolyn Cassidy, 20th Television's EVP of Development, reportedly pursued McGee for the project, having long wanted to collaborate with the Irish writer. The partnership between 20th Television and FX secured the series after the competitive pursuit.

McGee's television credits extend beyond Derry Girls. She curated and wrote an episode of the 2022 BBC anthology series Skint and created The Deceived for Channel 5, London Rush for Channel 4, and Raw for Ireland's RTÉ. Most recently, her series How To Get To Heaven From Belfast launched on Netflix in February. She has also written episodes for Indian Summers, The White Queen, and the BAFTA-winning Being Human.

As a playwright, McGee penned Jump!, which was adapted into a 2012 film, and Girls and Dolls, which won the Stewart Parker Award. She is represented by CAA and United Agents.

While the series remains in development with no production timeline announced, the project puts Wildwood in the national spotlight and could bring significant attention to our community's rich history as a summer destination for young workers and tourists alike.