David Farnor | On 22, Sep 2024

Nicole Kidman will star in Scarpetta, a new series for Amazon Prime Video.

Amazon Studios has ordered two seasons of the TV adaptation of Patricia Cornwell’s hit novels.

The mystery thriller will star Kidman as Kay Scarpetta, the Chief Medical Examiner, as she returns to Virginia and resumes her former position with complex relationships, both personal and professional – including her sister Dorothy, with plenty of grudges and secrets to uncover.

Joining Kidman (Big Little Lies, Expats) will be Jamie Lee Curtis (The Bear, Everything Everywhere All At Once) as Dorothy. Curtis and Kidman will also executive produce, while Liz Sarnoff (Barry, Lost, Deadwood) will write, executive produce and showrun.

Bobby Cannavale (Ezra, The Irishman) will play former detective Pete Marino, Simon Baker (Breath, Boy Swallows Universe) will join as FBI profiler Benton Wesley, Ariana DeBose (West Side Story, The Prom) will play Lucy Farinelli-Watson, Dorothy’s daughter, Rosy McEwen (Blue Jean) will play Past Kay Scarpetta, and Jake Cannavale (The Offer, Mandalorian, American Sports Story) will play Past Pete Marino.

The series is produced by Blumhouse Television and Amazon MGM Studios in association with Blossom Films and Comet Pictures. Patricia Cornwell will executive produce for P & S Projects alongside Jason Blum, Jeremy Gold, Chris Dickie, and Chris McCumber for Blumhouse Television and Per Saari for Blossom Films. David Gordon Green (Halloween, Stronger) is set to direct the first two episodes. Green and Amy Sayres will also serve as executive producers.

“Patricia Cornwell’s Kay Scarpetta has enraptured fans for decades and I am honored that Prime Video is entrusted to bring the series to screen for our global customers,” said Vernon Sanders, head of television, Amazon MGM Studios. “The most exemplary group has been assembled for the series with Liz Sarnoff at the helm with an extraordinary vision; the immensely talented Nicole Kidman, Jamie Lee Curtis, and the fantastic cast; and the top-notch team at Blumhouse.”

“I’m beyond excited that this is finally happening. This will be great fun for all, and I’m grateful for the immense talent that the show is drawing. I’ve always been a huge fan of Jamie Lee Curtis and Nicole Kidman. Their wanting to do this is humbling and simply awesome. Working with the brilliant Liz Sarnoff is amazing. Blumhouse and Prime Video are a dream. This has been worth waiting for, and I’m so looking forward to the show,” stated Patricia Cornwell.

Nicole Kidman added, ”I’ve been pursuing Scarpetta for nearly twenty years going back to when it was intended to be a feature, so to unite with the formidable Jamie Lee Curtis, Prime Video, Jason Blum, and David Gordon Green on the Liz Sarnoff series version of Patricia Cornwell’s epic and thrilling books feels like it was meant to be. I cannot wait to inhabit Kay Scarpetta and am so thankful to Patricia Cornwell for entrusting me with her.”

“I read Patricia Cornwell’s Scarpetta books with my Mother when they came out in the ’90s,” said showrunner Liz Sarnoff. “We loved having a badass female ‘boss’ heroine to root for and were amazed by the specificity, complexity, and sheer addictiveness of Patricia’s storytelling. I could not be more grateful and excited to be bringing these stories to life on the screen.”

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