Netflix Is Going All In on Richard Osman’s ‘We Solve Murders’
Richard Osman is back, and he's prepping a new series for Netflix.
Perhaps it was the obviousness of The Thursday Murder Club novels as a perfect TV franchise, but I had to remind myself multiple times that it was a standalone movie, not a six-part limited series. Any direct sequels would be more in the vein of the Enola Holmes installments – straight-to-streaming films that were good enough to run in theaters, should Netflix decide one was worthy of it. However, thus far, there’s been no movement on future feature-length films based on the second book in the series, The Man Who Died Twice.
(This may be related to Pierce Brosnan and Helen Mirren’s schedules being rather full due to the success of MobLand.)
Instead, Netflix has decided to reach into author Richard Osman’s oeuvre and start a second franchise based on his works, this time as a six-part series. Osman confirmed the news during his appearance on BBC’s The One Show, where he was promoting his latest release, We Chase Shadows, the second novel in his new series, We Solve Murders. The first novel, which came out in 2024, is now in development at Netflix.
(Why, yes, that is David Mitchell seated next to him, who was there to announce the Ludwig Christmas special news. It’s all connected, etc.)
Netflix has not officially announced the series as greenlit; hence Osman couldn’t say more than “Certainly, that’s what we’re up to at the moment with our friends at Netflix. That’ll be very exciting.” However, since Osman provided most of the news about The Thursday Murder Club, we’re treating him as a reliable source of information until proven otherwise.
Here’s the novel’s synopsis:
Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He still does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his familiar routines: the pub quiz, his favorite bench, his cat waiting for him at home. His days of adventure are over. Adrenaline is daughter-in-law Amy’s job now.
Amy Wheeler thinks adrenaline is good for the soul. Working in private security, every day is dangerous. She’s currently on a remote island protecting mega-bestselling author Rosie D’Antonio, until a dead body and a bag of money mean trouble in paradise. So she sends an SOS to the only person she trusts... As a thrilling race around the world begins, can Amy and Steve outrun and outsmart a killer?
The series is a great fit for the current trend of an older male retiree paired with a younger female detective, the same trope we’ve seen with Death Valley, Ridley, and other mystery series that have crossed the pond in recent years. It’s also a globe-trotting one, where the cases take place in settings with gorgeous vistas; Osman teased some of them, noting he sends his detectives to St Lucia and Southern Ireland. “They’re really beautiful places, so it’s going to look amazing, I’ll say that.”
Osman’s announcements about his shows are usually made pretty close to the actual Netflix confirmation, so we’ll be keeping an eye out for more news on this forthcoming project.
The Thursday Murder Club is available to stream on Netflix; all five novels are currently available on Kindle or wherever you get your books. We Solve Murders is also available on shelves; We Chase Shadows will arrive on Tuesday, September 15, 2026.
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