Netflix Adapts Harlan Coben’s Mystery Drama ‘The Woods’ In Poland

Peter White

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Netflix is adapting Harlan Coben’s mystery thriller The Woods as a Polish original.

The SVOD series has commissioned the European original from directors Leszek Dawid (You Are God) and Bartosz Konopka (Rabbit a la Berlin) and writers Agata Malesińska and Wojtek Miłoszewsk. ATM Grupa with Coben exec producing alongside Anna Nagler (The Coldest Game) and Andrzej Muszyński.

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The six-part series will launch in 2020. It is the latest international adaptation of a Coben book for Netflix; the digital platform is remaking El Inocente in Spain with Oriol Paulo and The Stranger and Safe in the UK. The series is financially supported by the Polish Film Institute.

Set in two time spans, 1994 and 2019, The Woods tells the story of a Warsaw prosecutor, Paweł Kopiński, who is still grieving the loss of his sister from twenty five years ago – the night she walked into the woods at a summer camp and was never seen again. But now, the discovery of a homicide victim – a boy who vanished along with Paweł’s sister – reveals evidence that links him to her disappearance. As hope rises that his sister could still be alive, dangerous secrets from his family’s past threaten to tear apart everything that Paweł has been trying to hold together.

“I’m so proud to be teaming up with this incredible cast and crew from Poland – and helping introduce their brilliant work to Netflix’s global audience,” said Coben.

Michael Azzolino, Director of International Originals, Netflix added, “We are excited to announce that our second original series for Poland will be an adaptation of Harlan Coben’s dual timeline mystery The Woods. ATM Grupa has assembled a top notch team of producers, writers and directors who have created a faithful adaptation of the book while adding local nuance and specificity of character to complete a gripping tale of innocence lost and the power of redemption.”

Dawid said, “The Woods is a story full of secrets – a story you will want to follow. Try as hard as you might to bury unresolved issues from the past, but one day they will find their way back to you anyway. What I find fascinating is the way the film deals with the idea of a carefree adolescence. Looking back at the time in your life when you lived your most beautiful but, at the same time, your most atrocious experiences. Learning the truth. You cannot go any further without doing that.”

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