‘The Woods’ is the next Harlan Coben mystery heading to Netflix, with production now underway in Manchester and across the North West for a new UK adaptation of the bestselling novel.
The eight-part limited thriller reunites Netflix with writer Danny Brocklehurst (Fool Me Once, Stay Close, Run Away), and if that combination already has you expecting buried secrets, emotional wreckage, and a plot that’s going to keep yanking the rug out from under everyone, you’re probably on the right track.
Based on Coben’s 2007 novel, the series centres on Paul “Cope” Copeland, a man still haunted by a tragedy from twenty years earlier, when his sister Camille vanished from a summer camp in the woods. Four young people disappeared that night, but only two bodies were ever found. Now, decades later, Cope appears to have rebuilt his life as a top barrister and devoted single father, until the discovery of a body linked to the original case throws everything back into question.
As Cope starts to believe his sister may have survived, he’s pulled back into the past and forced to confront years of lies, cover-ups and family secrets. Adding another layer to the mystery, he reunites with his first love, Lucy Silverfield, as the search for answers begins.
That mix of thriller mechanics and emotional damage is very much in Coben territory, but this one sounds like it has a particularly personal edge. Coben has described the story as a haunting and deeply personal one, with all the twists you’d expect, but with an emotional core built around old love, longing, and the scars left by a past that never really stayed buried.
Leading the cast is Tom Bateman (The Love Hypothesis, Hedda) as Paul “Cope” Copeland, alongside Michelle Keegan (Fool Me Once, Brassic) as Lucy Silverfield, Mandeep Dhillon (MobLand, After Life) as Loren Muse, Pearce Quigley (Small Prophets, The Gentlemen) as Ira Silverfield, and James Buckley (The Inbetweeners, White Gold) as Lonnie Berger.
The wider cast also includes Rade Sherbedgia (Slow Horses, Downton Abbey) as Uncle Sosh, Shannon Watson (Outrageous, The Jetty) as Shannon Johnson, Pamela Nomvete (Nightsleeper, Andor) as Mrs Peters, Amelia Eve (The Haunting of Bly Manor, Leopard Skin) as Raya Stone, Kerry Howard (Witless, Him & Her) as Greta Cole, Roger Barclay (Industry, Andor) as EJ Jenrette, Simon Lowe (Kirkmoore, Miss Scarlet and the Duke) as Bob Cole, Dean Fagan (Time, Missed Call) as DS Steve York, Tom Allen (Titanique, The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice) as Flynn Hickory, Tracy-Ann Oberman (Run Away, Friday Night Dinner) as Jessica Kinberg, Charlotte Beaumont (Broadchurch, Call the Midwife) as DC Daisy Dillon, and Christopher Harper (Call the Midwife, Endeavour) as Wayne Steubens.
Behind the camera, Brocklehurst serves as lead writer and executive producer, with additional writing from Charlotte Coben, Tom Farrelly and Joe Forrest. The series is produced by Quay Street Productions, part of ITV Studios, with Nicola Shindler and Richard Fee executive producing alongside Coben and Brocklehurst. Will McDonagh produces, while Andy De Emmony, Claire Tailyour, and Isher Sahota direct across the eight episodes.
Netflix is clearly hoping this will continue the hot streak for its Harlan Coben adaptations. ‘The Woods’ becomes the 14th Coben title produced for the streamer, following shows including The Stranger, Stay Close, Missing You, Fool Me Once, and Run Away. Given how huge Fool Me Once became, and how reliably these things seem to pull viewers into increasingly terrible situations involving long-lost secrets and very bad decisions, there’s every chance this could be another big hit.
There’s no premiere date yet, but with filming now underway in the UK, this is one to keep firmly on the radar.
‘The Woods’ does not yet have a premiere date but will air on Netflix in the UK. If you want to keep track of this or any other shows, you can add them via our Never Miss system, and you’ll be notified when it gets a UK premiere date. Visit Never Miss.
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