Netflix to adapt legendary crime series after infamous 2010s flop

With all the great stories waiting to be adapted, it’s a surprise to see the inspiration behind one of the biggest cinematic flops of the 2010s getting a second chance on TV.

Fans of Jo Nesbø’s Harry Hole book series almost had their adaptation dreams come true when The Snowman, the seventh book in the series, got the movie treatment in 2017.

With Michael Fassbender and Rebecca Ferguson starring, all signs pointed to The Snowman becoming one of the year’s greatest thrillers. But, alas, it wasn’t meant to be.

Seven years later, the film is currently sitting at a shocking 7% on Rotten Tomatoes. Needless to say, the film is widely considered one of the biggest disasters of the 2010s. Now, the Harry Hole books are getting second life with an upcoming Netflix TV show.

Harry Hole book ‘The Devil’s Star’ getting a new adaptation on Netflix

Following the poor reception of 2017’s The Snowman, the Harry Hole series is getting a Netflix adaptation for the fifth book, The Devil’s Star.

The reveal of the new show comes as part of Netflix’s roster of upcoming Nordic projects. This time around, Nesbo himself will pen the script for the Norwegian drama.

Published in 2003, The Devil’s Star follows the detective Harry Hole as he investigates the murder of a woman in Oslo during the summer. A notable stylistic shift from the icy tale of The Snowman, this bodes well for a new take on the widely-praised crime books.

The Snowman didn’t exactly flop at the box office when it came out in 2017, earning $43.1 million against a $35 million budget, but its legacy is tarnished by absolutely abysmal critical reviews and audience reactions alike.

All this raises the question of why Netflix feels confident leaning towards an already-established franchise with a questionable history. That said, the expanded TV show format could help The Devil’s Star avoid the same problems The Snowman encountered — the main one being that it was scattered and sluggish.

While we wait to see if the newest adaptation of Jo Nesbø’s work flies rather than freezes, be sure to check out all the new movies to stream this month.