Despite Julia Roberts' three decade long career in the world of Hollywood, her television appearances have been few and far between. In 2018, she made her most prolific series move, starring in the thriller Homecoming and now, she's returning to our living rooms for the high-profile limited series, The Last Thing He Told Me.
The Oscar-winning actress will star and executive produce the Apple TV+ series, which is the latest addition to the list of book adaptations being produced by Reese Witherspoon's production company, Hello Sunshine.
The project is based on the highly-anticipated novel by American novelist Laura Dave, which received a straight-to-series order from the streaming platform following what has been described as an extremely competitive bidding situation. The tale follows a woman (Roberts), who forms an unlikely relationship with her estranged step-daughter following the strange disappearance of her husband. The screen adaptation is being created by Dave and co-created by her partner, Oscar-winner Josh Singer (Spotlight).
The novel is set to be published in hardcover by Simon & Schuster on May 4 2021, with no confirmation yet on when we can expect the series to air. Until then, we're looking to the extended synopsis for some more insight into the gripping tale.
Before Owen Michaels disappears, he manages to smuggle a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her. Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly to whom the note refers: Owen’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. Bailey, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother.
As Hannah’s increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered; as the FBI arrests Owen’s boss; as a US Marshal and FBI agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn’t who he said he was. And that Bailey just may hold the key to figuring out Owen’s true identity—and why he really disappeared.
Hannah and Bailey set out to discover the truth, together. But as they start putting together the pieces of Owen’s past, they soon realize they are also building a new future. One neither Hannah nor Bailey could have anticipated.
The Last Thing He Told Me isn't the only series currently in the works for Witherspoon, who also announced that she will be adapting the New York Times' bestseller, Where the Crawdads Sing. Normal People's Daisy Edgar-Jones will be leading the cast as Kya, the "Marsh Girl" and narrator of the film.
The coming year is certainly shaping up to be a big year for television.
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