One of the streaming events of the season will occur Friday on Prime Video: the hotly anticipated premiere of the series “Daisy Jones & The Six,” adapted from the bestselling novel by Taylor Jenkins Reid.
The book, set in the world of the blossoming rock scene of Los Angeles in the 1970s, is like “Almost Famous” meets Fleetwood Mac, written in the style of an oral history. The series, which stars Riley Keough as the titular singer/songwriter and Sam Claflin as her co-frontman Billy Dunne, is structured as a faux “Behind the Music” episode, with interviews throughout.
“Daisy Jones & The Six” is produced by Reese Witherspoon (who selected the book for her book club) and Lauren Neustadter, whose husband Scott and his writing partner Michael H. Weber (“The Disaster Artist”) created the series. Their longtime creative collaborator James Ponsoldt executive produces and directed the first five episodes in the 10-episode series. The first three episodes premiere Friday, with two episodes dropping weekly thereafter.
The actors were put through an intensive “band camp,” and Claflin and Keough do all of their own singing. Keough, who has her own kingly rock heritage as the granddaughter of Elvis Presley, is particularly fantastic and magnetic as the wild child Daisy, modeled after Stevie Nicks. Camila Morrone also shines in a supporting role as Camila, Billy’s beleaguered wife, while Suki Waterhouse plays uber-cool British keyboardist Karen, a Christine McVie type.