Every Bookish Movie Coming to Netflix in Fall 2021
Sometimes I prefer to watch a book, you know? Last week, Netflix announced their fall lineup of original movies; these are the ones based on books.
September
Worth, Directed by Sara Colangelo (September 3)
Michael Keaton plays Ken Feinberg, the man in charge of the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund, in this biopic based on What Is Life Worth?: The Unprecedented Effort to Compensate the Victims of 9/11 by Kenneth R. Feinberg.
Blood Brothers: Malcolm X & Mohammed Ali, Directed by Marcus A. Clarke (September 9)
Based on the book Blood Brothers by Randy Roberts and Johnny Smith, this documentary uses archival footage to tell the story of these one-time friends and allies.
Nightbooks, Directed by David Yarovesky (September 15)
Based on the book Nightbooks by J.A. White, this movie follows a horror-loving young boy who is trapped by a witch and forced to tell her a story every night in order to stay alive, in a twisted mash-up of Hansel & Gretel and Scheherazade.
Sounds Like Love, Directed by Juana Macías (September 29)
Based on the novel We Were Songs by Elísabet Benavent and starring María Valverde, this movie follows Maca, a young woman who is just getting over a broken heart when the man who broke it, Leo (Álex González), comes back into her life.
No One Gets Out Alive, Directed by Santiago Menghini (September 29)
Based on the novel No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill, an immigrant takes a room in a boarding house and finds herself living in a nightmare.
October
There’s Someone Inside Your House, Directed by Patrick Brice (October 6)
Based on the novel There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins, high school seniors are being killed off by someone who is exposing all of their secrets.
Fever Dream, Directed by Claudia Llosa (October)
Based on the novel Fever Dream by Samanta Schweblin. A boy sits with a dying woman who is not his mother, and together they tell a story.
November
Passing, Directed by Rebecca Hall (November 10)
Based on the novella Passing by Nella Larsen, starring Ruth Negga and Tessa Thompson in the story of childhood friends who meet again as adults, one of them living in Harlem and the other married to a white man and passing as white.
tick, tick, BOOM! Directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda (November 19)
Why am I including this and not Diana: the Musical (October 1)? Because this one is available to buy as a book. (If you don’t know, tick, tick, Boom! was Jonathan Larson’s first musical, before a little show called Rent.) Starring Andrew Garfield, Alexandra Shipp, Vanessa Hudgens, Judith Light, and Bradley Whitford as Stephen Sondheim.
14 Peaks: Nothing is Impossible (November 29)
This documentary tells the story of Nims Purja, a climber from Nepal who was the first person to climb all 14 of the world’s 8,000-meter high peaks…in only seven months. His memoir Beyond Possible will be out January 2022.
A Boy Called Christmas, Directed by Gil Kenan (November)
Based on the children’s novel A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig, this appears to be a Christmasy Christmas story.
December
The Power of the Dog, Directed by Jane Campion (December 1)
Based on the book The Power of the Dog by Thomas Savage, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, and Kodi Smit-McPhee. As best I can tell, this one is about a mean rancher who is mean to his brother’s new wife and her son.
The Lost Daughter, Directed by Maggie Gyllanhaal (December 31)
Based on the Elena Ferrante novel The Lost Daughter, starring Olivia Colman and Dakota Johnson. The entire official description of this one is “A woman’s beach vacation takes a dark turn when she begins to confront the troubles of her past.” I AM INTRIGUED.
Original Movies for Romance Readers
If there’s one superpower I wouldn’t mind having, it’s the ability to watch romance novels. The only Netflix original above that looks like it may be based on a romance is Sounds Like Love, but I don’t know if it has a HEA. However, there are a few originals that look every bit as fun…
Love Hard, Directed by Hernan Jimenez (November 5)
Listen, this one involves a girl flying across the country to surprise the guy she’s been talking to on a dating app, only to discover that she has been catfished…and that’s where the romance starts???
A Castle for Christmas, Directed by Mary Lambert (November)
Brooke Shields (!!!) is an American author on vacation to Scotland (!!!!), where she decides to buy a castle (!!!!!), but Cary Elwes (!!!!!!) doesn’t want to sell it to her.
The Princess Switch 3, Directed by Mike Rohl (November)
Vanessa Hudgens returns in yet another Princess Switch movie. This time there is a priceless relic that’s been stolen!
Single All The Way, Directed by Michael Mayer (December)
M/M fake dating for the holidays, and the mom they’re trying to fool is played by Kathy Najimi!!!
If Netflix needs more ideas for books to adapt, we’ve got suggestions for Latinx books, books about disabled people, and LGBTQ+ books.
