Harlan Coben's successful crime novels are turned into blockbuster TV shows with the help of his screenwriter daughter.
The 62-year-old author signed a five-year deal with Netflix in 2018, allowing the streaming giant to adapt 14 of his novels into English and foreign language series.
His eldest daughter Charlotte Coben, 29, is credited as the author of all four of his most successful British adaptations: The Stranger (2020), Stay Close (2021), Shelter (2023) and Fool Me Once (2024).
The father-daughter duo's latest project, starring Michelle Keegan, has captivated viewers with its gripping episodes and twists since its release on New Year's Day, landing at the top of Netflix's global charts.
Charlotte, who now lives in New York City, created and wrote her own comedy thriller series Dead Hot for Amazon Prime UK. It is scheduled to be released this year.
Harlan Coben's successful crime novels are turned into blockbuster TV shows with the help of his screenwriter daughter Charlotte. The father-daughter duo are pictured together at the 2018 Cannes International Series Festival
Charlotte, now 29, is Harlan's eldest daughter. He is pictured reading a children's book to her many years ago
The father-daughter duo's latest project, Fool Me Once (pictured), starring Michelle Keegan, has captivated viewers with its gripping episodes and twists since its release on New Year's Day, landing at the top of the list global Netflix charts
Before her screenwriting career took off, Charlotte apparently followed in her father's footsteps after high school and attended his alma mater, Amherst College, a private liberal arts college in Massachusetts that prides itself on being the third oldest college in the state .
She later moved to Columbia University, where she graduated.
It appears that she was welcomed into her father's producing family soon after, writing the fifth episode of his hit limited series The Stranger, released in 2020. Harlan was an executive producer on the project.
After the success of The Stranger, Charlotte was seemingly given more responsibility as the duo collaborated on Stay Close (2021).
Charlotte wrote the fourth episode of the show, co-wrote the sixth episode and is credited as story producer on the project.
As Harlan's stories reached the top of the British television charts, the father-daughter duo's working relationship came into the spotlight.
Charlotte revealed that her father, who a Netflix executive said took a “flexible” and practical approach to the planning process, was one of her biggest cheerleaders.
“He's very supportive of my ideas, but not the bad ones. I appreciate that,” she told The New York Times in 2021, adding that navigating a professional relationship was “much easier than either of us expected.” “.
Charlotte is credited as the author of all four of Harlan's most successful British adaptations: The Stranger (2020), Stay Close (2021), Shelter (2023) and Fool Me Once (2024). Harlan and Charlotte are pictured together
Harlan served as an executive producer on Fool Me Once and even made a cameo appearance (pictured) on the series
Harlan Coben, Joanna Lumley, Nicola Shindler, Michelle Keegan, Richard Armitage, Richard Fee and Danny Brocklehurst attend the 'Fool Me Once' photocall at the Soho Hotel on December 12, 2023 in London
Netflix brought the duo back for its latest Coben project, Fool Me Once, which was released this year.
Harlan served as an executive producer and even made a cameo appearance on the series. Charlotte wrote the third episode and served as story producer.
However, due to her growing success, Charlotte did not become as committed to Fool Me Once as Harlan would have liked.
He told the Chron's Weekend magazine earlier this year: “She wrote one of the episodes of Fool Me Once, but she's become so in demand that she's setting out to write her own series.”
“As a father, I’m happy, but I’m also kind of sad to lose her.”
He added to Good Morning America that his daughter is “much funnier than me and understands younger people better.”
Thriller author Harlan Coben has four children with his wife Anne Armstrong. Above: The couple in 2011 with two of their children
Harlan and his wife Anne, who is also the mother of his children, are seen at the unveiling of a new bar at the Algonquin Hotel in New York in 2022
Charlotte, who is currently working on her own Amazon Prime UK show, is credited with producing her father's book Shelter (2023) for the platform.
She also wrote episodes two and four and co-wrote the pilot and finale.
Amazon was apparently impressed by her work, as the platform brings to life a story of her own creation, Dead Hot.
The series is set in Liverpool and “addresses themes of class, love and identity”.
According to the platform, the story is about the friendship between Elliot (Bilal Hasna) and Jess (Vivian Oparah) after the couple loses Peter, Elliot's first love and Jess' twin brother.
Quay Street Productions' Nicola Shindler serves as executive producer on Dead Hot, due out this year. Shindler is responsible for several hits including Happy Valley.
Dead Hot appears to be the first project Charlotte has worked on that isn't based on her father's books.
Charlotte is currently working on her own Amazon Prime UK show Dead Hot. The series is set in Liverpool and “addresses themes of class, love and identity”. Actors Vivian Oparah and Bilal Hasna are featured in the series
Harlan Coben and Anne Armstrong-Coben attend the Sonya Sklaroff's Secrets of New York exhibit at Algonquin Times Square, NYC on May 4, 2023
Harlan published his first novel in 1990 at the age of 26 and has sold more than 80 million books. Thanks to his Netflix contract, he is now an on-screen phenomenon.
The latest installment of this partnership was “Fool Me Once,” which premiered earlier this year and captivated viewers.
It follows UK-based adaptations of his novels Safe, The Stranger and Stay Close, as well as those for Polish (The Woods) and Spanish (The Innocent) audiences.
His first novel, the suspense thriller Play Dead, was published in 1990. Miracle Cure followed in 1991.
As the 1990s progressed, he published several of his Myron Bolitar novels, beginning with “Deal Breaker” in 1995. But it wasn't until 2001 that he became an international sensation with the release of “Tell No One.”
“Fool Me Once” is just the latest of 14 books by Coben that have been or will be adapted for cinema audiences in countries such as Great Britain, Spain and Poland.
Charlotte wrote the fourth episode, co-wrote the sixth episode and is credited as story producer on Stay Close (2021). The series features British actress Cush Jumbo
Safe (pictured), Harlan's first drama for Netflix, centers on a missing teenager who turns up alive. Charlotte was not involved in this production, which was released on the platform in 2018
Harlan's Polish series The Woods (above) and Hold Tight premiered on Netflix in 2020 and 2022, respectively
Harlan revealed in a previous interview that he “sells more internationally than I do in the US” – a possible reason why European audiences are the focus of the Netflix adaptations.
He told Deadline in 2021: “They want to do a lot of international stuff and my books sell well abroad.”
“I sell more internationally than in the US.”
“I thought it would be a cool opportunity to do a Netflix show in Spain, a Netflix France show, a Netflix UK show and a Netflix US show. “It appealed to me.”
Coben was initially convinced that his stories could be adapted for a foreign audience by producer Shindler, who made the hit drama It's A Sin.
The pair's first project, The Five, was released in 2016 and is set in the north west of the UK.
In 2018, Coben signed a five-year deal with Netflix. The project allowed the streaming giant to adapt 14 of his novels into English and foreign language series.
Harlan Coben, now 62, is pictured with his father. In June last year, he wrote on Instagram: “I'm now two years older than my father could ever be.”
Harlan Coben appears as a guest on Good Morning America on Tuesday, March 14, 2023
All of Coben's television programs are based on his novels, but characters and settings have been changed to take place in the countries in which they were broadcast.
The Netflix version of “Fool Me Once,” like the three previous English-language adaptations, is set in the northwest of England rather than New York as in the original novels.
Critics are divided on the series, with some viewers calling it “far-fetched.”
The production is currently at the top of the ratings after hitting theaters on New Year's Day.
Briton Richard Armitage – who previously starred in “The Stranger” and “Stay Close” – portrays murdered husband Joe Burkett. The series also stars Michelle Keegan and Joanna Lumley.
In addition to his Netflix deal, Coben has partnerships with Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime Video. The latter led to the production of the drama Shelter, which was released last year.
Harlan Coben poses with a billboard for his Netflix series Fool Me Once
Netflix is also set to adapt Coben's 11-volume Myron Bolitar series. This time around, the US setting of the novels will be retained and the show will be the first US-produced adaptation of one of Coben's works.
“Fool Me Once” is the fourth English production after “Safe” (2018), “The Stranger” (2020) and “Stay Close”, which was released in cinemas in 2022.
The Polish series “The Woods” and “Hold Tight” premiered on Netflix in 2020 and 2022, respectively, while the Spanish production “The Innocent” was released in 2021.
The French show “Gone for Good,” which in turn is based on Coben’s novel of the same name, was also released in 2021.
The author told Deadline last year that he also wants to make Netflix shows for viewers in Germany, Italy, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico.