Fans of Patricia Cornwell’s Kay Scarpetta novels were delighted earlier this year when it was announced that they’d be turned into a series for Prime Video with Nicole Kidman in the lead, and Jamie Lee Curtis portraying her sister, Dorothy. Two seasons are now officially in development, and while filming has yet to begin, Kidman recently teased the thriller as being scarier than The Others, her 2001 horror hit that has long been lauded as one of the spookiest ghost stories ever told.
While the two are obviously very different projects, Kidman called the script for Scarpetta “terrifying” in a new interview with Vanity Fair. The series follows Chief Medical Examiner Kay Scarpetta as she returns to Virginia and resumes her former position with complex relationships, both personal and professional – including her sister Dorothy – with plenty of grudges and secrets to uncover. When asked what about the thriller makes it so scary, Kidman responded:
Because it’s so well-written. It’s crazy how I’m frightened
reading
it. I haven’t done that. I can’t think of a film I’ve done where it was so terrifying. Like what?
The Others
wasn’t terrifying.
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The actress previously dabbled in the horror genre when she starred in the 2001 supernatural critical and financial success, The Others.
While she’s right in saying The Others wasn’t terrifying, it was definitely creepy. The Gothic horror film may be known for its tremendous twist ending, but along the way, audiences were treated to an atmospheric piece that didn’t rely on jump scares to freak you out. Instead, it was a tense, slow build that induced a sense of dread as things played out, with Kidman delivering one of the finest performances of her career up to that point. To at least put Scarpetta in the same conversation as The Others is saying something, and bodes well for fans of Cornwell’s books, who have long been used to their beloved character being placed in all sorts of blood-curdling situations.
Nicole Kidman Would Only Make ‘Scarpetta’ With Jamie Lee Curtis
Having been given the moniker of “scream queen” thanks to her early career and performances in films such as Halloween, The Fog, Prom Night, and Terror Train, Curtis has gone on to become one of the most respected actresses of any generation, and is now known for playing a variety of characters. Case in point: Deirdre Beaubeirdre in Everything Everywhere All At Once, which earned the star her first and only Oscar thus far.
For Kidman, when it came time to bring everything together for Scarpetta, she said she wouldn’t do the project unless Curtis came along for the ride. “I was like, ‘I’ll do it with you, but you have to play my sister. You have to go with me.’ And she’s like, ‘Okay,'” Kidman commented, quickly following up with:
“We’re producing it together and we’re in it together—and that is glorious. That’s what I mean, where you go, ‘Okay. Who’s got the same amount of passion and enthusiasm?’ Look at her. I mean, she’s unbelievable. She is a force.”
As mentioned, Scarpetta has yet to begin filming, so there’s no timetable for its release just yet. It’ll follow in the footsteps of some of Amazon’s other book-to-series successes like Reacher and Cross, and though little else is known of the show at this time, with Kidman and Curtis on board, we’re sure it’ll be another hit.
A remake of the 2001 horror film starring Nicole Kidman.
- Release Date
- August 10, 2001
- Director
- Alejandro Amenábar