Kay Scarpetta is headed to the small screen, with Nicole Kidman set to play Patricia Cornwell’s fictional medical examiner, Variety reports.
Amazon has greenlighted a series based on Cornwell’s bestselling series of crime novels. Kidman, the Australian actor known for her roles in films including Eyes Wide Shut and Being the Ricardos, will play the lead role.
Cornwell introduced Scarpetta, a workaholic medical examiner, in the 1990 novel Postmortem. More than two dozen novels featuring the character followed in the decades since, including From Potter’s Field, Point of Origin, Flesh and Blood, and, most recently, Identity Unknown, slated for publication next month.
Amazon has ordered two seasons of the series, Scarpetta, which will also star Jamie Lee Curtis as Kay Scarpetta’s sister, Dorothy. Other cast members include Bobby Cannavale (The Station Agent, The Irishman), Ariana DeBose (West Side Story), Simon Baker (The Mentalist), Jake Cannavale (Inside Man), and Rosy McEwen (The Alienist).
Liz Sarnoff (Barry, Lost) will be the showrunner, executive-producing alongside Cornwell, Kidman, and Curtis.
“I’m beyond excited that this is finally happening,” Cornwell told Variety. “This will be great fun for all, and I’m grateful for the immense talent that the show is drawing. I’ve always been a huge fan of Jamie Lee Curtis and Nicole Kidman. Their wanting to do this is humbling and simply awesome.”
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
