'Alias Grace' Air Date, Plot News: Margaret Atwood's True Crime Drama Finally Premieres
Netflix will release a new drama series based on best-selling author Margaret Atwood's work. "Alias Grace" will launch on the streaming platform on Nov. 3 and it's time period true crime show.
Atwood published "Alias Grace" in 1996 as a fictionalized version of a real-life event. The story centered on a woman named Grace Marks (Sarah Gadon) whose murder conviction in the 1840s became controversial.
Grace, an immigrant maid, killed her wealthy Canadian employer Thomas Kinnear (Paul Gross) and his mistress Nancy Montgomery (Anna Paquin). The series will tackle sex and violence, as well as probe Grace's psychological state. Given, however, that the source material is only a fictionalized version, then some of the events on "Alias Grace" don't reflect actual historical circumstances.
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Sarah Polley ("Road to Avonlea") adapted "Alias Grace" for a six episode show on Netflix with the guidance of Atwood, who willingly did cameo in one episode. Atwood already won over Hollywood's TV industry as her other book, "The Handmaid's Tale," which Bruce Miller adapted for Hulu and starred Elisabeth Moss, recently won Outstanding Drama Series at the Emmys.
"The thing about her is that she really understands film," Polley said of the esteemed author. "She sees a ton of film and television. So you're able to talk to her, not as just a writer of the novel, but as someone who really has a sense of what would work and what doesn't."
Polley wanted the film rights to "Alias Grace" when she read the book 20 years ago. She was only a teenager when she wrote Atwood of her intention to develop Grace's story on screen. Two decades later, Polley, Atwood, CBC and Netflix got together to develop the miniseries.
"Alias Grace" also stars Edward Holcroft (Dr. Simon Jordan), Zachary Levi (Jeremiah Pontelli), Kerr Logan (James McDermott) and Rebecca Liddiard (Mary Whitney). Mary Harron ("American Psycho") directed the episodes.
Netflix will release all six episodes of "Alias Grace" Friday, Nov. 3, at 3:00 a.m. EST.
