Mindy Kaling And Max Greenfield Teaming With Tess Sanchez To Develop WBTV Adaptation Of Her Book ‘We’ve Decided To Go In A Different Direction’

EXCLUSIVE: Warner Bros. Television has optioned worldwide rights to We’ve Decided to Go in a Different Direction, the bestselling book of essays by Tess Sanchez, for series development.

A former Hollywood casting director, Sanchez’s book, based on her own experiences, is billed as a funny, honest and moving exploration of navigating a career change in Hollywood, rediscovering your identity, and overcoming the relatable messiness that ensues from unforeseen circumstances.

Sanchez’s memoir begins in 2020, when, after decades, her role as a casting director was abruptly eliminated. This sudden career shift forced her to navigate an uncertain new chapter while juggling marriage, motherhood and caregiving for her aging and ailing father.

Simon & Schuster imprint Gallery published the book in 2025.

Mindy Kaling is set to exec produce the series — which will be a comedy — via Kaling International and its overall deal with WBTV. Howard Klein also exec produces via 3 Arts Entertainment, alongside Sanchez and her husband, Emmy-nominated actor Max Greenfield. A search for creator/writers is currently underway.

We’re told that Sanchez and Greenfield aggressively sought out Kaling to collaborate with them on this deeply personal project. Greenfield currently co-stars on Kaling’s hit Netflix comedy series Running Point; Kaling and Sanchez first worked together when Sanchez oversaw casting for her Fox series The Mindy Project, where Greenfield made multiple appearances. Previously, Sanchez gave Greenfield his big break via the fan-favorite role of Schmidt on New Girl, the Fox sitcom headlined by Zooey Deschanel, which ran for seven seasons.

Early in her career, from 2000 to 2007, Sanchez worked as Vice President of Talent and Casting at The WB, where she helped shape such iconic series as Felicity, Dawson’s Creek, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Smallville and Supernatural. In 2009, she joined Fox, rising to Executive Vice President of Casting and playing a key role in developing hits such as Brooklyn Nine-Nine, 9-1-1 and The Mindy Project. She is repped by Untitled, Aevitas and Johnson Shapiro Slewett & Kole.

An Emmy and Golden Globe nominee, Greenfield can currently be seen starring opposite Sunny Sandler and Melanie Lynskey in Julia Hart’s coming-of-age drama Don’t Say Good Luck, which garnered 25.3M views in its first three weeks on Netflix. He recently wrapped eight seasons as a series regular on the CBS sitcom The Neighborhood and is currently shooting a role in the fourth season of The White Lotus. He is repped by UTA and Untitled.

A prolific comedic multi-hyphenate, Kaling is known for pulling double duty behind and in front of the camera on the beloved comedies The Office and The Mindy Project. A Tony and WGA Award winner, she’s most recently worked on series including Running Point (Netflix), Not Suitable for Work (Hulu) and The Sex Lives of College Girls (HBO Max). She is repped by CAA, 3 Arts Entertainment and Ziffren Brittenham.