'The Thursday Murder Club' Trailer Will Make You Want to Join

Technically, summer doesn't start as a season until the solstice in mid-June. However, in the world of entertainment, the summer theatrical movie season begins at the top of May, having been pushed back by Disney from Memorial Day Weekend, and runs until the Toronto International Film Festival in September. This can be a bit awkward for streaming services, especially ones that typically debut their films on streaming, since the TV season doesn't end until May 31. Netflix tends to paper over the awkwardness by treating its film lineup as a separate entity. However, it's notable that once again, the most anticipated title released its first teaser after the three-day weekend.

The Thursday Murder Club has been one of Netflix's highest-profile forthcoming releases for 2025, alongside the third installment of the Knives Out franchise. Both films star British movie A-listers, and both are showcases for all-star casts. However, what makes them hits, more than who they feature, is that they are cozy crime dramas in the Agatha Christie mold. Daniel Craig's Benoit Blanc in Knives Out is an obvious Poirot-style detective; Thursday Murder, meanwhile, is a Miss Marple-on-steroids riff, with four pensioners solving crimes instead of one.

Netflix has been bullish on The Thursday Murder Club because it is designed to appeal to a much older audience, some of whom have never fully grasped how to use the app properly, and many of whom still have cable, so this is a new push to bring them on board as subscribers. Additionally, it already has built-in sequels to keep those who sign up coming back. The Thursday Murder Club series spans multiple novels, with another one set to hit bookshelves and Kindles mere weeks after the film's debut.

Here's the series synopsis:

Based on the international best-selling novel of the same name, The Thursday Murder Club follows four irrepressible retirees — Elizabeth, Ron, Ibrahim, and Joyce — who spend their time solving cold case murders for fun. When an unexplained death occurs on their own doorstep, their casual sleuthing takes a thrilling turn as they find themselves with a real whodunit on their hands. 

The primary quartet of crime solvers will be played by Helen Mirren (1923) as ex-spy Elizabeth Best, Ben Kingsley (The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar) as retired psychiatrist Dr. Ibrahim Arif, Pierce Brosnan (MobLand) as one-time union activist Ron Ritchie, and Celia Imrie (The Diplomat) as former nurse Joyce Meadowcroft. They are joined by a star-studded ensemble cast, including Jonathan Pryce (The Crown) as Elizabeth's husband, Stephen Best; Tom Ellis (Agatha Christie's Poirot) as Ron's son, Jason Ritchie; and Ingrid Oliver (Doctor Who) as Joyce's daughter, Joanna Meadowcroft. Naomi Ackie (2073) co-stars as local cop PC Donna De Freitas, with Sarah Niles (Ted Lasso) as her mother.

David Tennant (Rivals) guest stars as the owner of the pensioner village, Ian Ventham, and Henry Lloyd-Hughes (We Were the Lucky Ones) as the club's assistant, Bogdan Jankowski. Richard E. Grant (Saltburn) plays Bobby Tanner; Daniel Mays (Moonflower Murders) is Donna's boss, DCI Chris Hudson. Paul Freeman (The Man Who Fell to Earth), Ruth Sheen (Unforgotten), and Geoff Bell (Whitstable Pearl) round out the supporting cast.

The film was adapted from Richard Osman's novel of the same name by Suzanne Heathcote (Killing Eve) and Katy Brand (Good Luck to You, Leo Grande). Director Chris Columbus (Harry Potter) helmed the film. Executive producers include Osman, Jo Burn, Eleanor Columbus, Holly Bario, and Jeb Brody, with Columbus and Jennifer Todd serving as producers.

The Thursday Murder Club will premiere on Netflix on Thursday, August 28, 2025. The fifth book in the series, The Impossible Fortune, is scheduled to arrive on shelves in September 2025.