Anya Taylor-Joy might have been destined for success no matter what, but there's no way that The Queen's Gambit didn't help. The Netflix show was a breakout, runaway success back in 2020, and propelled her to new heights.
It might have helped that it came in a period when lockdowns were still rolling around the world, but we all hoovered the show right up, and Taylor-Joy's offbeat performance at its heart was key – and it won her a Golden Globe. Now she's teaming up with Netflix again for another completely different show.
This time around it's How To Kill Your Family – an adaptation of the no.1 best-selling novel success of the same title by Bella Mackie. Taylor-Joy will star as protagonist Grace Bernard, who sets off on a quest for violent revenge against her largely estranged family.
Anya Taylor-Joy is set to star as murderous Grace Bernard, protagonist extraordinaire in How To Kill Your Family, a new eight-part Netflix series thrillingly inspired by Bella Mackie’s best-selling novel of the same name! pic.twitter.com/WGep4CPJmYAugust 21, 2024
Taylor-Joy has issued a nice little quote to get people hyped for the show: "As soon as I turned the last page, I knew I had to be a part of bringing this story to life. After some (light) stalking of the inimitable Bella Mackie, I could not be more thrilled to be collaborating with the team that is executive producers Sally Woodward Gentle, Lizzie Rusbridger, and Emma [Moran]. I am looking forward to getting our hands even dirtier."
That does hint at the fact that this is very much just the announcement of a planned production – Netflix hasn't shared when the show will start filming, let alone when we might be able to actually watch it on the streaming platform. It has called it a "British show" though, so we're assuming it'll be produced on UK shores.
With more than a million copies of Mackie's book having been sold, there are plenty of fans out there who will be thrilled to hear about the adaptation. Netflix has also proven itself a dab hand at the mystery genre, thanks to modern hits like Rian Johnson's Knives Out.
Whether it can cement its place as the best streaming service for lovers of crime fiction and true crime alike remains to be seen, but How to Kill Your Family seems like it can only help that case. There's likely a fair bit of time to wait until we find out, though.
