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The best crime TV and film adaptations of 2025
It’s an unspoken rule that whenever a new TV show or film is based on a book, it’s going to be good. After all, for the story to have become a bestseller and attracted the attention of Hollywood (or Netflix), it must have a compelling story at its core. This is particularly true of thrillers, from Gone Girl to Fool Me Once, with their corkscrew twists that leave you glued to the sofa.
With that in mind, we’ve rounded up the best book-to-screen adaptations for 2025. We might be biased, but we recommend reading the book first – because everyone knows the book is always better…
7 best-selling books becoming TV shows and films in 2025
The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware
1. The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware
The book: A travel journalist on a luxury cruise sees a body being thrown overboard in the night. But, as there are no passengers missing on the ship, nobody believes her. Did she imagine it, or is there a killer on board?
The show: Ruth Ware’s bestselling novel is getting the Netflix treatment, and we’ll probably be bingeing the whole thing in one sitting when it comes to our screens this autumn. We’re particularly excited for its stellar cast, including Keira Knightley (hot on the heels of her stand-out performance in Black Doves last year), Guy Pearce (L.A. Confidential), Hannah Waddingham (Ted Lasso) and David Ajala (The Dark Knight).
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
2. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
The book: Four friends in a retirement village meet up once a week to investigate unsolved mysteries. But when someone is murdered on their doorstep, the gang have their first live case…
The film: It’s hardly surprising that so many big names jumped at the chance to star in the film adaptation of Richard Osman’s bestseller. Dame Helen Mirren, Celia Imrie, Pierce Brosnan and Sir Ben Kingsley lead the cast. There’s huge talent behind the camera too: Chris Columbus (Harry Potter, Home Alone) is the director, and Steven Spielberg the producer. We can’t wait for the film to come to Netflix on 28th August 2025. For more information, check out our round-up of everything we know about the film so far.
The Night Manager by John le Carré
3. The Night Manager by John le Carré
The book: In this iconic spy thriller, a night manager at a luxury hotel becomes entangled in the world of corrupt intelligence agencies and dangerous arms dealers.
The show: The hotly anticipated second series of The Night Manager will be coming to our screens in 2025, nine years after its first outing. While its exact release date has not yet been announced, we do know that Tom Hiddleston, Olivia Colman and Hugh Laurie will be reprising their roles. They won’t be the only familiar faces: writer David Farr, who penned the first series, returns alongside director Susanne Bier. For more information, take a look at our summary of everything we know about the new series of The Night Manager.
The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
4. The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
The book: In this bestselling psychological thriller, Millie works as a live-in housemaid for a seemingly perfect family. Then she crosses the matriarch and learns that her life could be in danger. Luckily, there’s more to Millie than meets the eye…
The film: Euphoria star Sydney Sweeney plays the lead role, joined by Brandon Sklenar (It Ends with Us), Amanda Seyfried (Mamma Mia) and Michele Morrone (Another Simple Favor). The film will be released on Christmas Day – a perfect thriller to pass the time during the Betwixtmas period.
Persuader by Lee Child
5. Persuader by Lee Child
The book: In the seventh book in Lee Child’s hit series, Jack Reacher goes undercover as the bodyguard for the son of suspected drug smuggler Zachary Beck, in the hopes of rescuing an undercover DEA agent.
The show: The third series of Reacher hit Prime Video in February this year, with Alan Ritchson reprising his role as the tough former Army major with a strong moral compass. Maria Sten has also rejoined the cast, while newcomers Sonya Cassidy and Anthony Michael Hall play DEA agent Sarah Duffy and businessman Zachary Best, respectively. As Reacher retains its loyal fan base, it’s no surprise that the show’s been renewed for a fourth series.
Virdee by A A Dhand
6. Virdee by A. A. Dhand
The book: Originally published as City of Sinners in 2018, this detective novel sees DCI Virdee investigating a puzzling murder in Bradford. But the killer is watching Virdee all along as, little does he know, this case is personal.
The show: Author A. A. Dhand has adapted his novel for the screen, making some tweaks to the plot. The six-part BBC series, which first aired in February this year, sees DCI Virdee (played by Game of Thrones’ Staz Nair) seek help from his brother-in-law Riaz to hunt down a serial killer who is targeting Bradford’s Asian community. Viewers and critics agree it’s addictive viewing – and we’ve ranked it one of the best TV shows of 2025.
The Night Agent by Matthew Quick
7. The Night Agent by Matthew Quick
The book: FBI agent Peter Sutherland monitors the emergency phone line in the White House Situation Room, which seldom rings – until one night it does. On the other end of the line is a woman who says someone gave her the phone number with urgent instructions: “Tell them OSPREY was right. It’s happening.” Suddenly, Sutherland is thrown in the deep end, unravelling a conspiracy that points to a Russian mole in the U.S. government.
The show: The first series of The Night Agent was a huge success when it first aired in 2023 – and the second series does not disappoint. Gabriel Basso returns as Peter Sutherland, travelling between New York and Thailand on a mission for the secretive organisation Night Action. All 10 episodes are available to stream now on Netflix – and fans can look forward to more action in the future as the show has already been renewed for a third series.
More exciting adaptations on the horizon
We have a bit of a wait until the following books are adapted to the screen, but here’s everything we know about them so far…
None of This is True by Lisa Jewell
None of This is True by Lisa Jewell
Anyone who has read this thriller by Lisa Jewell, which was voted 2024’s Crime Book of the Year, will know it was made for the small screen. Blending pacy narration with snippets from a fictional documentary, reading None of This is True feels like watching a true crime show through your fingers. So, it makes perfect sense that Netflix is adapting the novel into a feature film (release date TBD). The story sees lonely mum Josie befriend a podcaster, Alix. But what starts as a professional relationship turns into an unhealthy obsession with sinister consequences.
I Will Find You by Harlan Coben
I Will Find You by Harlan Coben
When Harlan Coben’s name is attached to a Netflix series, you know it’s going to be good — think Missing You, Fool Me Once and Stay Close, which had us hooked to our screens. We therefore can’t wait until Coben’s next adaptation – this time, of his novel I Will Find You, which sees a man wrongly imprisoned for murdering his son, only to discover that he is still alive. The star-studded cast has already been announced, including Sam Worthington (Avatar, Lift) in the main role, with Britt Lower (Severance), Milo Ventimiglia (This is Us), Logan Browning (Dear White People) and Erin Richards (The Crown) filling out the cast. The release date hasn’t been announced yet, but we’ll definitely be tuning in.
The Bat by Jo Nesbo
The Detective Hole series by Jo Nesbo
This won’t be the first time that Jo Nesbo’s troubled detective Harry Hole has been brought to life (who can forget the chilling 2017 film The Snowman?) but the upcoming Netflix adaptation will offer something different. After all, it’s the first time the serial killer mystery will be made into a TV show and it will be penned by the author himself, Jo Nesbo. We don’t yet know which book will be the basis for the adaptation, but we do know Jo Nesbo’s Detective Hole will be released in 2026 and already boasts an impressive cast, with Tobias Santelmann (Exit, The Arctic Convoy) playing the lead detective and Joel Kinnaman (Altered Carbon, The Suicide Squad) as his nemesis Tom Waaler.
Will you be tuning in for any of the above adaptations? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…
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