Part of the franchise of the same name, it is based on the 1999 film by Roger Kumble, which in turn was a modern retelling of Pierre Choderlos de Laclos' 1782 novel Les Liaisons dangereuses.

[2] In 2015, NBC picked up a television pilot for a continuation of the 1999 film Cruel Intentions with Sarah Michelle Gellar returning but later passed on the project.

[7] Upon the main cast announcement, Pavun Shetty, Andrea Iervolino, Monica Bacardi, and Bruce Mellon were added as executive producers.

Original Film, Iervolino & Lady Bacardi Entertainment, Sony Pictures Television, and Amazon MGM Studios are producing the series.

[8] In June 2023, Sarah Catherine Hook, Zac Burgess, Khobe Clarke, Brooke Lena Johnson, Sara Silva, John Harlan Kim, and Myra Molloy joined the starring cast with Sean Patrick Thomas as Professor Chadwick, having previously appeared in the original film as Ronald Clifford.

The website's critics consensus reads, "Neither as fun or transgressive as the original Cruel Intentions, this television adaptation doesn't cut deep enough to make much of an impression.