Sam Neill and Annette Bening headline mystery thriller Apples Never Fall, which the BBC has picked up.
The latest adaptation to spring from a book by Lianne Moriarty is the number one New York Times bestselling book Apples Never Fall, which has been acquired by the BBC for broadcast in the UK.
It’ll star Sam Neill and Annette Bening as a pair of middle-aged tennis coaches whose happy lives are turned upside down by a woman’s mysterious disappearance.
The synopsis reads as follows:
Apples Never Fall centres on the seemingly picture-perfect Delaney family. Former tennis coaches Stan (Sam Neill) and Joy (Annette Bening) have sold their successful tennis academy and are ready to start what should be the golden years of their lives. While they look forward to spending time with their four adult children, everything changes when a wounded young woman knocks on Joy and Stan’s door, bringing the excitement they’ve been missing. But when Joy suddenly disappears, her children are forced to re-examine their parents’ so-called perfect marriage as their family’s darkest secrets begin to surface.
The cast also includes Jake Lacy, Alison Brie, Conor Merrigan-Turner and Essie Randles.
Melanie Marnich adapted the book and acts as showrunner, with Dawn Shadforth and Chris Sweeney directing.
Sue Deeks, Head of Programme Acquisition at the BBC, said “Suspenseful and sinister, Apples Never Fall is a compelling mystery drama that will keep BBC viewers intrigued until its riveting final episode.”
Author Lianne Moriarty’s work has already been adapted for the small screen, most notably Big Little Lies, a glossy, big budget drama starring Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon and Shailene Woodley. It ran for two series, with a third currently being discussed, but not officially commissioned.
Kidman also headlined the next adaptation, Nine Perfect Strangers, which premiered in 2021. A second series of that show is in production. An adaptation of Moriarty’s 2005 book The Last Anniversary, again produced by and starring Kidman, is in production in Australia as well.
Apples Never Fall will be broadcast on BBC One later this year, we’ll keep you updated as we hear more.
