Sky has found its Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander. David Oyelowo (‘Silo’, ‘Selma’) and Viola Prettejohn (‘The Crown’, ‘The Testament of Ann Lee’) will lead ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’, a new eight-part adaptation of the first novel in Stieg Larsson’s bestselling Millennium series.
Oyelowo plays Blomkvist, a once-celebrated journalist whose reputation has taken a hit, while Prettejohn takes on Salander, the fiercely independent hacker who becomes his unlikely investigative partner. They have a disappearance to solve, an extraordinarily powerful family to contend with, and, if previous versions of this story are any guide, very little reason to trust anyone.
The case begins with Harriet Vanger, who vanished more than 30 years ago from her family’s secluded island home. Blomkvist and Salander are drawn into the buried history of the Vangers, one of Sweden’s most powerful industrial dynasties. As they dig deeper, the danger stops feeling like something safely confined to the past.
If you know the novel or either of its earlier film adaptations, that mystery will sound familiar. Sky says the series will retain Larsson’s characters and investigative story while moving them into the present day. That gives the adaptation room to explore how power, secrecy and misogyny operate in a connected digital world. Salander was a formidable hacker when the book first arrived; putting her in today’s world opens up some interesting possibilities.
It is also a sizeable pair of roles to take on. Blomkvist and Salander have already made the journey from page to screen in Swedish and Hollywood films, so Oyelowo and Prettejohn will have a chance to put their own stamp on two characters audiences know well. With eight episodes to work with, the series has more space to spend inside the Vanger mystery and the uneasy partnership at its centre.
The adaptation comes from Left Bank Pictures, whose credits include ‘The Crown’ and ‘Dept Q’. Amanda Coe, Steve Lightfoot and Angela LaManna are writing and executive producing, with Reinaldo Marcus Green (King Richard, Bob Marley: One Love) serving as lead director. Andrea Harkin and Amy Neil will also direct episodes.
Charlotte Moore, executive producer and CEO of Left Bank Pictures, said: “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is an iconic story with themes of power, corruption, justice and violence against women that feel even more timely today.”
Filming is set to begin in Lithuania in October. The series will be available on Sky in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and Austria, while Sony Pictures Television will handle international distribution.
‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ will premiere on Sky in the UK, with a date yet to be announced.
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