According to Deadline, BBC is currently in the process of developing a new TV series adaptation based on Cecil Day-Lewis’ murder mystery novel The Beast Must Die. The studio is planning to make the series into a detective drama.
RELATED: Ben Barnes to Star in BBC’s Gold Digger
The untitled series will follow the story of Frank Cairns, an esteemed writer who plots the perfect murder but ends up working together with a top detective in order to clear his name. The series will be produce by Scott Free London (Taboo) which is run by Ed Rubin. The Beast Must Dies remake is being written by Gaby Chiappe (Their Finest) along with Nathaniel Parker as the show’s executive producer.
In the 1938 novel written by Day-Lewis, Cairns’ young son was killed in a hit-and-run car accident that’s why he intends to murder the driver who’s responsible for the death of his son. But when his intended victim is found dead, it leads to Cairns becoming the prime suspect which he insists that he has been framed. In order to prove his innocence and unravel the mystery surrounding the case, Cairns’ enlists the help of his old friend private detective Nigel Strangeways.
RELATED: Charlie Heaton Cast as The Elephant Man for BBC Drama
Cecil Day-Lewis was an Anglo-Irish poet who has used the pen name Nicholas Blake in writing his mystery novels (including The Beast Must Die). He was also the father of Academy Award winner Sir Daniel Day-Lewis (Phantom Thread). The Beast Must Die adaptation could potentially become a long-running franchise because Day-Lewis wrote 15 books that features Dectective Strangeways.
