Emily Henry fans are about to get what they’ve been waiting on for years: the first of many adaptations. Her New York Times bestselling novel People We Meet on Vacation is coming to a streaming service near you. With the iconic, stand-out talent from Emily Bader as the spunky, free-spirited Poppy and Tom Blyth as the quiet and reserved Alex, both actors bring must-watch energy to their characters. The film will hit Netflix on January 9, 2026, giving us the best possible reason to countdown to the New Year.
For fans of star-crossed relationships and the drama of trying to put back together what might be irrevocably broken, the story of Poppy and Alex is sure to be a winner both on-page and on-screen.
Emily Henry on Book and Movie Differences
Recently, EmHen gave an interview on Instagram (via Netflix) to share the differences between the book and the adaptation.
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So, of course, we had to pluck these juicy details out for you!
- Location Change: The movie is primarily going to be set in Barcelona instead of the Palm Springs location in the book.
- Fresh Scenes: She also said that for the sake of the movie format, some of the scenes are truncated, but that this brought about fresh scenes and new banter for fans to look forward to.
“So that means we get new dialog between Poppy and Alex, new moments, new jokes, new beats of affection,” Emily shares in the video. “And it’s kind of just like we get extra pieces of them and I really think that the readers are gonna just like eat that up.”
She Reads Exclusive Behind-the-Scenes
In case you didn’t know, Yulin Kuang is the screenwriter bringing this adaptation to life and we were fortunate enough to feature her back when her book, How to End a Love Story, came out. She is also writing and directing Beach Read!
In our exclusive interview with her, she shared this about partnering with Henry:
“It’s a dream come true to have a hand in shepherding these book-to-screen journeys, and it’s been such a privilege getting to know the voice behind the books everyone loves so much. Emily is everything you’d hope for in a creative partner, as a filmmaker adapting an author. She understands her characters and her audience so well, and advocates for them both with such grace. She also understands adaptation as an art form unto itself and has been so supportive as we do the dirty work of transplanting her stories into the soil of a new art medium.”
Get even more insider details by reading the full interview here.
People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
It would be faster to count the things that Alex and Poppy do have in common rather than try to number all the things they don’t. The two are polar opposites, through and through. They’re also best friends. Alex is the perfect mellow to Poppy’s pep and, despite the distance between them, they meet up every summer for a week-long vacation just the two of them. Of course, that was before everything about their relationship went to hell. Now, it’s been two years since the pair have spoken, and they might have shattered their bond for good.
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