The Thursday Murder Club, one of the many upcoming book-to-screen adaptations on the way, will bring one of the most charming, engaging, and hilarious mystery novels of the past decade to Netflix. But before the star-studded murder mystery about a group of retirees who find themselves at the center of a life-or-death situation debuts for anyone with a Netflix subscription, there are a few things we’ll need to discuss about the highly anticipated project.
That being said, we have gone through all the evidence and come up with a list of everything we know about the 2025 Netflix original film, including its cast, details concerning its story, and the creative team pulling it all together. Here’s what we know about The Thursday Murder Club so far…
What Is The Thursday Murder Club Release Date?
Just before the summer portion of the 2025 movie schedule concludes, we’ll see The Thursday Murder Club, which is set for release on August 28th. The highly anticipated movie is just one of multiple major 2025 Netflix films that we are looking forward to seeing in the next few months.
The Thursday Murder Club Cast
The Thursday Murder Club cast will consist of some legendary and talented actors who will surely bring the movie to life when it eventually premieres. As Netflix has announced, the upcoming mystery will feature the talents of Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley, and Celia Imrie as its core group, but that’s just part of the cast. Here’s who's appearing and who they’ll be playing:
Helen Mirren as Elizabeth
Helen Mirren, an actress who just keeps on thriving, will take on the role of Elizabeth, the founder of the Thursday Murder Club with a knack for solving mysteries. Mirren, who won an Oscar for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen, has scores of iconic film roles to her name.
Pierce Brosnan as Ron
Pierce Brosnan, who’s well recognized for playing James Bond throughout the ‘90s and early 2000s, will play Ron, a headstrong retired union activist and core member of the club. The Irish actor can currently be seen playing a perilous mob boss on MobLand, opposite Helen Mirren.
Ben Kingsley as Ibrahim
Ben Kingsley will be playing Ibrahim, a retired psychiatrist and member of the titular group. With an Oscar for his portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi and decorated roles in Bugsy, Shutter Island, and Iron Man 3, Kingsley’s done it all.
Celia Imrie as Joyce
Rounding out the core group of The Thursday Murder Club is Celia Imrie, who’ll be taking on the role of Joyce, a former nurse and dedicated amateur sleuth. The star of such films as The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Nanny McPhee, and the Bridget Jones movies, Imrie brings an impressive amount of experience to the cast.
But these are just the main quartet of the upcoming crime flick, as Netflix has also announced that the following actors will also be appearing in the movie:
- David Tennant
- Jonathan Pryce
- Naomi Ackie
- Daniel Mays
- Richard E. Grant
- Tom Ellis
- Geoff Bell
- Paul Freeman
- Sarah Niles
- Ingrid Oliver
- Henry Lloyd-Hughes
What Is The Thursday Murder Club About?
When The Thursday Murder Club lands on Netflix, it will tell the story of a group of friends living in a retirement home who pass the time by discussing and trying to solve cold-case murders for fun. However, as announced by Netflix, the group of would-be detectives will find themselves in a rather delicate situation when they become caught up in a recent murder case that will require their particular set of skills and ingenuity to solve.
Essentially, the short synopsis makes The Thursday Murder Club sound like a perfect option for fans of classic mystery films as well as awesome whodunnit TV shows like Only Murders in the Building.
When Can We Expect The Thursday Murder Club Trailer?
With The Thursday Murder Club’s release date quickly approaching, a lot of us are over here trying to figure out when we’ll get our first proper look at the upcoming book-to-screen adaptation. And while it hasn’t been confirmed as to when we’ll get to see a trailer, it wouldn’t be all that surprising if we get at least a teaser during the Netflix Tudum 2025 event on May 31st. The upcoming event, which will feature appearances by the streamer’s biggest stars, first-look videos of some of the platform’s biggest shows (Stranger Things Season 5, anyone?), and much more, would be a perfect place to catch a glimpse of the project.
The Thursday Murder Club Is Based On Richard Osman’s 2020 Novel Of The Same Name
If The Thursday Murder Club sounds familiar, it could have something to do with the fact that the upcoming movie is based on Richard Osman’s 2020 novel of the same name, which was also the Pointless and Richard Osman’s House of Games TV host’s debut novel. Osman’s book follows a group of four unlikely friends from a retirement home who are put to the task of solving a brutal murder.
The novel would go on to spawn a series of successful page-turner sequels from Osman like The Man Who Died Twice, The Bullet That Missed, and The Last Devil to Die. The fifth installment in the series, The Impossible Fortune, is set to hit bookshelves this fall, but you can pre-order it on Amazon now.
In September 2024, Osman released We Solve Murders, the first novel in a new series of murder mysteries. And who knows, maybe we’ll be talking about a film or TV adaptation of that series soon enough.
The Thursday Murder Club Books In Order
Considering there are still a few months between us and the release of The Thursday Murder Club on Netflix, now would be a great time to go back and check out Richard Osman’s series of novels about the titular group of elderly sleuths passing time at a retirement home by solving crimes. With four novels in the series already published, and a fifth installment hitting bookshelves this fall, there’s plenty of reading to do while you let the summer days pass.
- The Thursday Murder Club - September 22, 2020
- The Man Who Died Twice - September 28, 2021
- The Bullet That Missed - September 20, 2022
- The Last Devil to Die - September 19, 2023
- The Impossible Fortune - Releasing on September 30, 2025
Chris Columbus Directed The Thursday Murder Club
When Netflix announced in April 2024 that it was making The Thursday Murder Club into a reality, it was also announced that Chris Columbus was writing and directing the upcoming book-to-screen adaptation.
Best known for directing some of the best ‘90s movies like Home Alone and Mrs. Doubtfire, and helping get the Harry Potter film franchise off the ground with The Sorcerer’s Stone and The Chamber of Secrets, Columbus has done a little bit of everything over the years. Before making his directorial debut with 1987’s Adventures in Babysitting, Columbus wrote Gremlins, The Goonies, and several others.
Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment Has Been Developing The Thursday Murder Club Since 2020
As has been the case countless times over the years, a film adaptation of The Thursday Murder Club was in the works well before the novel landed on bookshelves. In March 2020, Variety reported that Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment secured the worldwide rights to the film more than six months before Richard Osman’s debut novel was published.
At the time, Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel director Oli Parker was attached to helm the project, but considering Chris Columbus is now at the reins, those plans ultimately fizzled out.
The Thursday Murder Club Was Previously Adapted Into A BBC Radio Drama In 2021
The upcoming Netflix movie isn’t the first time The Thursday Murder Club has been adapted, as the BBC produced a radio drama based on Richard Osman’s novel a few months after it was first published. Over a couple of weeks in early 2021, BBC 4 Radio broadcast a 10-episode abridged version of Osman’s debut book, read by Haydn Gwynne.
What Is The Thursday Murder Club Rated?
Though The Thursday Murder Club is very much about deadly crimes and investigations to bring the perpetrators to justice, it won’t be too extreme of an affair. Netflix has given its upcoming murder mystery a PG-13 rating for violent content, bloody images, strong language, and some sexual references. Though not quite a family-friendly affair for the younger children in your house (or visiting grandchildren), it doesn’t sound like Chris Columbus’ adaptation of Richard Osman’s novel will be extraordinarily vile by any means.
Expect to hear much more about The Thursday Murder Club in the coming weeks and months as we get closer to its long-awaited debut on Netflix.
Stream The Thursday Murder Club on Netflix starting August 28, 2025.
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