Harlan Coben’s ‘Fool Me Once’ Announced

Michelle Keegan, Adeel Akhtar, Richard Armitage, and Joanna Lumley lead the cast for the Netflix limited thriller series. The streaming platform also announced the new casting for the English series.

• Maya Stern – Michelle Keegan (Brassic, Our Girl)
• Detective Sergeant Sami Kierce – BAFTA award-winner Adeel Akhtar (Sweet Tooth, Ali & Ava)
• Joe Burkett – Richard Armitage (Stay Close, The Stranger)
• Judith Burkett – BAFTA award-winner Joanna Lumley (Absolutely Fabulous, Finding Alice)
• Shane Tessier – Emmett J.Scanlan (Kin, Peaky Blinders)
• Marty McGreggor – Dino Fetscher (Years and Years, Foundation)

Harlan Coben’s Fool Me Once follows Maya Stern (Michelle Keegan) who is trying to come to terms with the brutal murder of her husband, Joe (Richard Armitage). But when Maya installs a nanny cam to keep an eye on her young daughter, she is shocked to see a man she recognizes in her house. Her husband, who she thought was dead…

Detective Sergeant Sami Kierce (Adeel Akhtar) leads the homicide investigation into Joe’s death while grappling with secrets of his own. Meanwhile, Maya’s niece and nephew, Abby and Daniel, are trying to find the truth about their mother’s murder, several months earlier. Are the two cases connected? Fool Me Once follows these characters on a thrilling hunt for the truth that will reveal shocking secrets and change their lives forever. Joanna Lumley is Judith Burkett, Joe’s protective mother.

In keeping with previous Harlan Coben adaptations, Fool Me Once will relocate the story from the US to the UK. Filming has now started in Manchester and the Northwest of England.

Harlan Coben says: “I’m thrilled and honored to once again be collaborating with my uber-talented partners Danny, Nicola, and Richard. ‘Fool Me Once’ will be our fourth Netflix series [following ‘Safe,’ ‘The Stranger’ and ‘Stay Close’] together, and man, it never gets old! ‘Fool Me Once’ is a pulse-pounder — a shocking story of how secrets and deceit have the power to bring people together while simultaneously tearing them apart. I can’t wait to see how this dream cast brings these characters to life.”

Danny Brocklehurst said: “Following on from our smash hits ‘The Stranger’ and ‘Stay Close,’ ‘Fool Me Once’ does not disappoint. Harlan’s books are storytelling genius and it’s great to be entrusted once more in bringing his gripping stories of life. As always with our thrillers, expect twist upon twist and an emotional roller-coaster. Plus, the cast is phenomenal – audiences are in for a treat!”

Executive Producers for Quay Street Productions, Nicola Shindler and Richard Fee said: “Harlan is a master of twists and turns that are impossible to predict, which is what makes adapting his books for television impossible to resist! ‘Fool Me Once’ is no different, we’re incredibly excited to bring the story to life with an all-star cast.”

David Moore (Outlander, The Last Kingdom) (lead director, blocks 1 and 3), and Nimer Rashed (block 2) will direct the episodes. Danny Brocklehurst (Brassic, Come Home), Charlotte Coben, Yemi Oyefuwa, Nina Metivier, and Tom Farrelly penned the script for the series.

Fool Me Once will be the 8th on-screen adaptation from bestselling author Harlan Coben through his ongoing creative partnership with Netflix. Coben continues his work with local screenwriters from around the world to bring his novels to life on screen, so far across four languages.