Here Are All The Book Adaptation Coming to Screens Soon

It's a genuinely strange and exciting moment for literary adaptations! Good or bad, the dearth of book adaptations clearly tell us that this train isn't stopping soon. Project Hail Mary may have shattered all records, and Wuthering Heights may have bombed, but will that stop us from flocking to the cinemas to watch our favourite books come to life? Well, definitely not.

Denis Villeneuve is wrapping up his Arrakis trilogy in December with Timothée Chalamet descending further into messianic despotism in Dune: Part Three. Meryl Streep just got announced (last week, actually) as the lead in a Netflix limited series of Jonathan Franzen's The Corrections. Anne Hathaway, Dakota Johnson, and Josh Hartnett are doing Colleen Hoover's Verity this October. Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman are back as the Owens sisters in Practical Magic 2, based on Alice Hoffman's sequel novel. So yeah, there’s a lot going on.

The Book Adaptation Movies and Shows Coming Soon

Here's every adaptation worth paying attention to — the ones already on screens, the ones hitting theatres this year, and the ones still deep in development.

Animal Farm

By George Orwell

In theatres May 1, 2026

Andy Serkis's long-gestating animated adaptation of Orwell's novella finally lands and it's got teeth! Seth Rogen voices Napoleon, Woody Harrelson is Boxer, with Kieran Culkin, Glenn Close, Laverne Cox, and Gaten Matarazzo filling out the farm. Serkis updates the Stalinist allegory for the age of corporate authoritarianism. Early critics say it's "uncannily meeting its time."

Remarkably Bright Creatures

By Shelby Van Pelt

Netflix, May 8, 2026

Sally Field headlines this adaptation of Van Pelt's debut as Tova, a grieving widow who strikes up an unlikely bond with a giant Pacific octopus. Lewis Pullman, Colm Meaney, and Joan Chen co-star, while Alfred Molina voices the octopus Marcellus. Director Olivia Newman (Where the Crawdads Sing) knows how to handle a bestseller — and this one has 64 weeks on the NYT list to live up to!

The Sheep Detectives

By Leonie Swann

In theatres May 8, 2026

Based on Swann's 2005 novel Three Bags Full, this live-action mystery-comedy finds Hugh Jackman as a shepherd who reads murder mysteries to his flock — unaware they understand every word. When he turns up dead, the sheep take matters into their own hooves. The voice cast alone make this one to watch: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Patrick Stewart, Emma Thompson, and Brett Goldstein.

Sense and Sensibility

By Jane Austen

In theatres Sept. 11, 2026

Focus Features is taking another swing at Austen's classic, with Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esmé Creed-Miles as the Dashwood sisters, alongside Caitríona Balfe and Fiona Shaw. Edgar-Jones is also doing Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow — the woman is having a year!

Practical Magic 2

By Alice Hoffman

In theatres Sept. 18, 2026

Nearly 30 years after the original became a cult classic, Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman are back as the Owens sisters. Based on Hoffman's The Book of Magic, the sequel adds Joey King, Maisie Williams, Xolo Maridueña, Lee Pace, and Solly McLeod to the coven.

Verity

By Colleen Hoover

In theatres Oct. 2, 2026

After It Ends With Us cleared $346M worldwide, the CoHo adaptation machine rolls on. Anne Hathaway plays the titular thriller writer, Dakota Johnson is the ghostwriter hired to finish her books, and Josh Hartnett is the husband caught between them.

Dune: Part Three

By Frank Herbert

In theatres Dec. 18, 2026

Villeneuve's final Arrakis film brings back Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Javier Bardem, and adds Robert Pattinson as the villain Scytale. Villeneuve has described it as his most personal film yet. A teaser dropped in March and it looks, predictably, extraordinary.

A Tale of Two Cities

By Charles Dickens

BBC/MGM+, 2026

Kit Harington, François Civil, and Mirren Mack lead this four-part BBC adaptation written by Daniel West. It's a leaner, more propulsive take on Dickens — set against the backdrop of the French Revolution — with a sharp love triangle at its centre.

Three Incestuous Sisters

By Audrey Niffenegger

This is going to be the most talked-about film announcement of 2026. Alice Rohrwacher (La Chimera) directs a loose adaptation of Niffenegger's gothic illustrated fable, with a cast that is frankly absurd: Saoirse Ronan, Dakota Johnson, freshly-minted Oscar winner Jessie Buckley, and Josh O'Connor.

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow

By Gabrielle Zevin

Zevin's 2022 behemoth finally has its film. Daisy Edgar-Jones is set as game designer Sadie Green; Siân Heder (CODA) directs. The male leads are still uncast, which means the conversation around Sam Masur is about to get very loud.

The Corrections

By Jonathan Franzen

The white whale of literary adaptations — HBO tried and failed with a Noah Baumbach pilot back in 2012 — has finally found its home. Netflix gave a straight-to-series order with Meryl Streep starring as Enid, the Midwestern matriarch holding her dysfunctional family together at Christmas. Cord Jefferson directs and Franzen is writing his own adaptation.

Lincoln in the Bardo

By George Saunders

Tom Hanks will play Abraham Lincoln in an adaptation of Saunders's Booker Prize-winning novel, combining live-action with stop-motion animation. Duke Johnson directs and Saunders is writing the script himself.