Lars Kepler’s bestselling Killer Instinct book series is being adapted into an Apple TV+ series, with Liev Schreiber (The Perfect Couple), Zazie Beetz (Atlanta), and Stephen Graham (Adolescence) attached to star. Emmy nominees Schreiber and Beetz will also serve as executive producers, and BAFTA Award winner Rowan Joffe (Tin Star) and John Hlavin (Shooter) will serve as writers, co-showrunners, and executive producers.
The Killer Instinct novels centering around Detective Joona Linna are set in Sweden, but the series will move the action to the U.S. Filming is expected to begin on the 10-episode season in Pittsburgh this summer, with the lead character’s name switched from Joona Linna to Jonah Lynn.
“The project tells the story of Jonah Lynn (Schreiber), an ex-soldier turned homicide detective who, tired of working the tough streets of Philadelphia, moves to a small town in Western Pennsylvania for a quiet life,” reads Apple TV+’s synopsis. “But, as the town and his family come under attack from the diabolically cunning serial killer Jurek Walter (Graham), Jonah must protect all that he holds dear. When the desperate search for Jurek’s last missing victim forces Jonah to send his adopted daughter, FBI Agent Saga Bauer (Beetz), up against Jurek, how far will Jonah go?”
The crime novels by Lars Kepler (the pseudonym of married couple Alexandra Coelho Ahndoril and Alexander Ahndoril) have sold more than 18 million copies. The Ahndorils will be involved in the adaptation as executive producers along with Dorothy Fortenberry, Niclas Salomonsson, Øystein Karlsen, and David Rysdahl. Emmy and DGA Award winner Tim Van Patten (Black Mirror) will direct the first two episodes and executive produce.
The untitled series will be produced for Apple TV+ by A+E Studios in association with Range Studios.