Stacked lineup alert: Netflix’s new Roald Dahl show adds Nicola Coughlan and The Wire star

Netflix is digging back into Roald Dahl’s cupboard of stories, and this time they’re going after the darker stuff. There’s a fresh series on the way—six episodes, all based on Dahl’s less family-friendly short stories. And the casting… well, it’s hard not to notice the names they’re stacking up. Let’s break down why this new adaptation is shaping up to be a bit of an event.

Netflix bought up the Roald Dahl Story Company in 2021, which basically handed them the keys to all of Dahl’s works—kid’s books, adult tales, the lot.

Top-Tier Cast and Crew

Let’s start with the leads: Nicola Coughlan (yep, Penelope from Bridgerton), Imelda Staunton (fresh off The Crown and, years back, Hogwarts), and Dominic West (The Wire’s own McNulty). Not exactly your standard telly lineup. The cast list doesn’t stop there either. You’ll also see Naomi Scott, Josh Finan, Toby Jones, Carmen Ejogo, Christine Tremarco, Michael Socha, and Clarke Peters having a go. It’s a hefty bunch, and that’s before you get to the creative team—Danny Brocklehurst, who’s responsible for Fool Me Once, is running the show.

The Format: Six Episodes of Twisted Dahl

Netflix is keeping tight-lipped on which specific stories are getting adapted, but they have dropped the broad setup. The show takes a young couple—no details on who’s playing them yet—and dunks them in various twisted Dahl worlds across each episode. Think: marooned in a run-down seaside town, running into every kind of wrong’un you can imagine. The logline promises encounters with con men, adulterers, murderous mothers and even snake charmers, all while this couple tries to escape before their own number’s up. So, fairly light bedtime reading, that.

It’s all being filmed in Manchester and the wider northwest, which suggests they’re doubling down on that washed-up British coastal vibe.

• The series is comprised of six episodes, each a separate adaptation of Dahl’s adult short stories.
• Netflix hasn’t revealed which stories are being covered (so that’s anyone’s guess for now).
• No official title for the series as of yet—just 'upcoming Roald Dahl project' everywhere you look.

The Big Netflix Play

This is just the latest in Netflix’s ongoing obsession with Dahl. Since grabbing his estate, they’ve been steadily lining their library with new versions of his stuff: The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Three More, The Twits, and Matilda the Musical are already there. They’ve even thrown out a competition series, The Golden Ticket, riffing off Willy Wonka’s universe because, why not?

No word yet on when this untitled project is actually hitting screens—production’s only just started, so it could be a while yet.