At the beginning of each new year a very popular resolution is to include 30 minutes of reading before bed. It’s truly a fantastic way to switch off and get your body ready for a restful sleep. However, if these best laid plans have already gone out the window (no shame here, life gets busy) you might be interested to learn that quite a few bestselling books are being adapted into TV series and movies coming in hot in 2023.
It comes as no surprise that studios are searching high and low for the next big hit adaptation with hits like Big Little Lies and Shadow and Bone proving that books really do make the best source material. With that in mind it would appear that everyone has been rifling through Reese Witherspoon’s book club list to get their hands on a book option with their sights set on Hollywood.
With so many book adaptations coming to screens in 2023 we’ve pulled together a list of the best so you can get your Goodreads account firing and finish reading before these TV shows and movies premiere.
Daisy Jones & The Six
This novel from Taylor Jenkins Reid became an overnight success so it is no surprise it got snapped up and turned into a series for Amazon starring Riley Keough and Sam Clafin. The story revolves around the meteoric rise to fame of a 1970s band centering around the lead characters of Daisy and Billy. There’s good music, intoxicating relationships, tense moments, important conversations around addiction and just a really interesting romp about a band.
Watch it: Out now on Amazon Prime.
A Man Called Otto
Originally released as A Man Called Ove by Frederick Backman this tale is about a down-and-out elderly gentleman who finds an unlikely friendship with Marisol. This book touches on grief and new beginnings and is absolutely going to make you cry when you watch it brought to life with the incomparable Tom Hanks playing ‘Otto’.
Watch it: Out now on Apple TV+, Amazon Prime.
Love Again
I am here to urgently tell you there is a new rom com film coming soon and it stars Québécois songbird of our generation Celion Dion playing Celine Dion!!! I could stop there but there is just so much more to say about Love Again that will undoubtedly become your new fave sloppy-Sunday-on-the-couch watch. Based on the novel Text for You, this story focuses on Mira (Priyanka Chopra Jonas) who is grieving the death of her fiance and continues to send messages to his phone. Enter Rob (Outlander heartthrob Sam Heughan) who gets a new phone and intercepts the messages meant for a dead man. What could possibly go wrong?!
Watch it: 1May 11, 2023 in cinemas.
Wonka
We’ve all seen the elusive pictures from on set of the much-hyped Wonka film starring boy wonder, Timothée Chalamet and it’s enough to render me decidedly hungry for more. Some might say Roald Dahl’s classic children’s book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory has been adapted enough by now, but the lure and intrigue of a Willy Wonka origin story paired with a cast boasting the likes of Rowan Atkinson, Olivia Coleman and Sally Hawkins – well it’s enough to get people tuning in.
Watch it: December 14, 2023 in cinemas.
Wellmania
Aussie comedian Celeste Barber has been entertaining us for years with her digs at celebrities on Instagram but now she’s made it to the big leagues, landing the lead role in Netflix’s Wellmania. Based on the nonfiction book Wellmania: Misadventures in the Search for Wellness, this series takes a look at the pursuit of a better self by following the life of a hard-partying foot writer played by Barber.
Watch it: March 29, 2023 on Netflix.
The Last Thing He Told Me
In truly no surprise to anyone the #1 New York Times mystery-thriller novel about a woman searching for answers when the love of her life disappears, has swiftly received the Hollywood treatment and is coming to screens very soon. Starring Jennifer Garner as Hannah Hall and Australian actress, Angourie Rice, as her daughter, this looks set to be an instant hit. Count me in.
Watch it: April 14, 2023 on Apple TV+
Lessons in Chemistry
Bonnie Garmus’ charming novel Lessons in Chemistry has become a beloved tale the world over thanks to the brilliant characters and witty writing. Add Brie Larson to the mix and you’ve got a recipe for a quirky TV series set in the 1950s that brings together science, cooking and a woman’s plight to step out of the box of conformity. After abysmally flunking chemistry in school I never thought I’d be interested in ~science~ and yet here we are.
Watch it: 2023 on Apple TV+
Love At First Sight
If you loved watching Haley Lu Richardson in White Lotus season 2, you’re about to see a lot more of her in the new young adult romance flick, Love Again. Based on the novel The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith, this adaptation will follow Hadley and Oliver during their chance meeting at JFK airport. After losing track of each other the story is set to beg the question – will fate bring them back together? You’ll have to read on (or watch) to find out!
Watch it: September 2023 on Netflix.
The Pale Blue Eyes
For the more cerebral readers among us, Louis Bayard’s novel The Pale Blue Eyes has come to Netflix with a stellar cast. Christian Bale and Gillian Anderson will help tell the story of detective Augustus Landor who receives help from a fledgling cadet who is later known as macabre poet and author, Edgar Allen Poe. Tune in if mystery and gore are your kinda viewing.
Watch it: Out now on Netflix.
A Little White Lie
Watch this movie based on a book about a man who lies about writing a book. Confused? Don’t be! This comedy stars Michael Shannon and rom com queen Kate Hudson in a tale of mistaken identity, love connections and status. Look, it might not be the most highfalutin piece of content ever made but who said things have to be so serious all the time?!
Watch it: Out now on Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime.
Spaceman
Did I ever think I would be watching a film about a Czech orphan who grows up to be an astronaut who travels to Venus on a dangerous mission starring Adam Sandler in the lead role? No. Will I now spend every waking hour waiting until I can watch Spaceman until it is released? Yes! This movie is based on the sci-fi cult novel Spaceman of Bohemia by Jaroslav Kalfař and stars Carey Mulligan and Paul Dano.
Watch it: 2023 on Netflix.
Leave The World Behind
Julia Roberts. Denzel Washington. Kevin Bacon. Ethan Hawke. Mahershala Ali. Need I say more? I doubt I need to but I will! This psychological thriller follows the story of a vacation gone wrong when an unexplained blackout takes place. It all sounds very mysterious and if you simply can’t wait to watch it then tuck into the original novel written by Rumaan Alam.
Watch it: December 2023 on Neflix.
Eileen
Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2016, Eileen is a novel set in 1960 and revolves around the story of a friendship between co-workers born inside the walls of a correctional facility. The film adaptation stars Anne Hathaway who is having somewhat of a Anne-naissance so I am decidedly excited to see her turn in what is rumoured to be an awards magnate. It recently premiered at Sundance so release details are sure to be hot on its heels.
Watch it: TBC
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret
Well, if it isn’t the iconic novel of your childhood rearing its head to remind you, you’re quite old now. Nonetheless it’s time to walk back down memory lane with this infamous coming-of-age-tale about a young girl trying to understand her religious identity. This movie adaptation of the Judy Blume novel should be very sweet and it stars Rachel McAdams so it’s a no-brainer really.
Watch it: April 28, 2023 in cinemas.
American Born Chinese
Starring three of the cast members from the Oscar-winning film Everything Everywhere All at once, Ke Huy Quan, Michelle Yeoh and Stephanie Hsu are rejoining forces in American Born Chinese. Based on the graphic novel of the same name, this TV series will tell the story of a young boy who is trying to navigate life as a social teenager with his immigrant family.
Watch it: 24 May, 2023 on Disney+
White Bird
This graphic novel is about a young Jewish girl and her friendship with a boy who goes to great lengths to hide her in Nazi-occupied Germany during World War II. Starring Dame Helen Mirren and Gillian Anderson, this adaptation will no doubt be just as heartwarming as the original novel. Bring tissues.
Watch it: 18 August, 2023 in cinemas.
Poor Things
This one is certainly not for the faint-hearted. Belle Baxter has been brought back to life by a scientist after drowning herself to escape her abusive husband. The novel by Alasdair Gray certainly touches on some bleak subject matter but I am definitely interested in seeing how this will be adapted for screen. There is a jam-packed cast including Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe, Margaret Qualley, Mark Ruffalo, and Ramy Youssef – so you know this one is going to be worth watching.
Watch it: 2023, TBC
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