Spring has sprung, and April is set to bring plenty of rain, plenty of sun, and plenty of new book-to-screen adaptations. Watch for Kirkus’ upcoming column on Margo’s Got Money Troubles, a new Apple TV series based on the Kirkus-starred novel by Rufi Thorpe, which was a finalist for the Kirkus Prize. It stars Elle Fanning, Michelle Pfeiffer, Nick Offerman, and Nicole Kidman, and premieres on April 15. Here are four more book-based series coming soon:
April 8: The Testaments (series premiere, Hulu)
This promising series is based on the 2019 dystopian novel by Margaret Atwood—the long-awaited sequel to her acclaimed 1985 bestseller The Handmaid’s Tale, which inspired an acclaimed six-season Hulu series of its own. This new show tells the story of a later generation of women in The Handmaid’s Tale’s setting: a theocratic, authoritarian future United States, known as the Republic of Gilead, where women and girls are systemically oppressed and subjugated. It stars One Battle After Another’s Chase Infiniti as Agnes, a student at a Gilead prep school, and Blue Jean’s Lucy Halliday as Daisy, a new student from Canada; Emmy winner Ann Dowd, as headmistress Aunt Lydia, returns from the original Handmaid’s Tale series.
April 9: The Miniature Wife (series premiere, Peacock)
The darkly comic title story of Manuel Gonzales’ 2013 collection inspired this show, which tells the tale of a scientist who invents amazing technology that can miniaturize anything—but when his wife is accidentally shrunk down to “the height of a coffee mug,” he finds that he’s unable to restore her to her original size. Enraged, she takes revenge. The show stars several fine comedic talents, including Emmy winner Matthew Macfadyen (Succession, Death by Lightning) and Elizabeth Banks (the Hunger Games films) as the scientist and his spouse, with the always-great Ronny Chieng (Interior Chinatown) and Aasif Mandvi (Evil) in supporting roles.
April 29: The House of the Spirits (limited series premiere, Prime Video)
Isabel Allende’s Kirkus-starred 1985 magical-realist novel about three generations of women in a wealthy Chilean family was previously adapted as a 1993 English-language theatrical film starring Jeremy Irons, Meryl Streep, Winona Ryder, Glenn Close, and Antonio Banderas. The format of this intriguing new Spanish-language miniseries seems likely to be a better fit for the acclaimed novel’s episodic structure and lengthy timeline; it stars Delores Fonzi (who was wonderful in the underseen 2021 horror-thriller film Fever Dream), Alfonso Herrera (Sense8), Fernanda Urrejola (Narcos: Mexico), and Rochi Hernández (Night Sky).
April 30: Man on Fire (series premiere, Netflix)
This show is based on a series of thrillers by the late British author A.J. Quinnell. In the first entry, 1980’s Man on Fire, a troubled American mercenary named Creasy is hired by a wealthy Italian businessman to act as a bodyguard to his 11-year-old daughter; his failure to prevent a kidnapping leads to tragedy, and he soon sets out on a mission of revenge. The novel was adapted as a theatrical film twice before—in 1987, starring Scott Glenn, and in 2004, starring Denzel Washington and Dakota Fanning; the latter movie, directed by Tony Scott, was a gripping crime tale, enlivened by skillful performances. The new series features some fine actors, as well—including Emmy winner Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Candyman, Watchmen) as Creasy, Bobby Cannavale (Scarpetta), and Scoot McNairy (Halt and Catch Fire)—and the trailer promises brutal fights and explosions galore for action aficionados.
David Rapp is the senior Indie editor.
