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EXCLUSIVE: Harlan Coben and Nicola Shindler have flagged a “shared vision” and “hybrid British-American sensibilities” as leading to the success of Fool Me Once, Netflix‘s most-watched show in the first half of this year.
The showrunner-producer pair chatted to Deadline in advance of the latest data dump, which saw their fourth Netflix UK Coben adaptation top the charts with more than 100 million views in the first half of this year. And it’s been a good day for the Brits, with Bridgerton, Baby Reindeer and The Gentlemen backing up Fool Me Once in the top four and One Day also making the top 10. Ted Sarandos was in London earlier this week trumpeting the Brits’ success.
With the show having launched nearly a year ago, Coben cited a “shared vision” between himself, Shindler, writer Danny Brocklehurst, producer Richard Fee and Netflix as contributing to its runaway success.
“We work hard and want to make something cool and interesting,” he added. “And Netflix make you feel like they are part of your team rather than something you’re working against, which can sometimes occur in these circumstances.”
Fool me Once was the streamer’s latest Coben adaptation under a mega deal that will see at least two more shows, Missing You and Run Away, hit TV screens in the coming years. All have performed well for Netflix but Fool Me Once is the standout.
Shindler said the “hybrid of American crime story and British sensibilities” was crucial. The Coben novels are set in the U.S. but Netflix’s adaptations relocates them to the UK with mostly British acting talent such as Michelle Keegan and Richard Armitage. “I think there is a lot of creative backing right now in the UK,” added Shindler, who runs Fool Me Once producer Quay Street Productions. “Putting Harlan’s sensibilities next to British humor and accents – the audience really goes for that.”
In a further boon, Shindler, a storied UK exec whose past credits include It’s a Sin and Queer as Folk, said the success of Fool Me Once has led to an uptick in views of Coben’s older Netflix adaptations such as Safe and Stay Close, which amassed 13 million views over the six months.
She said Netflix’s move to be more transparent with data has been “brilliant” for producers who were previously left in the dark over the performance of their shows.
Coben added: “It’s easy to pretend you’re above [the data] but I think it’s been interesting to see the impact the show has in terms of numbers. It doesn’t really change what we do but is satisfying to know that so many people are getting into [the show].”
‘Missing You’ update
Next up for Shindler and Coben is Missing You, which is being penned by previous writing collaborator Victoria Asare-Archer, who wrote two eps of 2021’s Stay Close.
The drama tells the story of detective Kat Donovan, played by Slow Horses’ Rosalind Eleazar, who stumbles across her estranged fiancé on a dating app, forcing her to delve back into the mystery surrounding her father’s murder.
Shindler revealed the team is finishing off episode one of Missing You. Unlike previous adaptations, Missing You will only be made up of five episodes, and Coben said it “fits the story” to be “leaner.” “That’s another good thing about Netflix, there is no pressure on the number of episodes,” he added.
