This week, a bunch of books took their first big steps toward the screen. Here’s a roundup of the teasers and trailers that dropped this week.

‘The Rapture’

The BBC released a trailer Friday for its upcoming adaptation of Liz Jensen’s novel “The Rapture.” The five-episode series is directed by Eva Sigurðardóttir and written by Bryony Kimmings and Rebecca Manley (“Berlin Noir”). A synopsis of the series describes it as a “high-stakes thriller which crackles with danger.”

“Set in a heatwave, with protestors on the streets, forensic psychologist Gabs Fox (Ruth Madeley) starts a new job at a high-security psychiatric hospital where she meets 17-year-old Bethany Krall (India Amarteifio).”

Bethany, who has been convicted of murdering her mother, says she’s innocent and tells Gabs she has psychic powers. The series doesn’t have a U.S. release date.

‘Les Miserables’

A fresh adaptation of Victor Huge’s classic “Les Misérables” is heading to theaters—this one from French filmmaker Fred Cavayé. The film stars Vincent Lindon, Tahar Rahim, Camille Cottin, Benjamin Lavernhe, Noémie Merlant, Vassili Schneider, Megan Northam, Marie Colomb and Louis Peres. 

Set during the French Revolution, “Les Misérables” tells the story of Jean Valjean (Lindon), who has been imprisoned for 19 years for stealing a loaf of bread. After his release, he starts a new life with a new name, raising an adopted daughter Cosette (Northam) and trying to steer clear of Inspector Javert (Rahim). The film is set to hit French theaters Oct. 14, but there’s no release date in the United States yet.

‘From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman’ Season 2

A new trailer was released for the second season of “From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman” featuring four new cast members. Based on the series of light novels by Shigeru Sagazaki, the show tells the story of Beryl Gardinant (Hiroaki Hirata), a swordsman in a small village who discovers that his former students have gone on to be impressive knights in the capital of Baltrain. He’s then asked to also travel to the capital to teach others. Season 1 ends with Beryl rescuing the king’s daughter and returning to his village. Crunchyroll reported that the series also introduced four new characters for Season 2—Hanoy Cressa (Takashi Kondo), Kuriu Rybark (Hiromu Mineta), Prim (Mami Uchida) and Morris Pasyushka (Hiroshi Yanaka). 

The second season is set to stream on Prime Video beginning July 8.

About the writer

Danielle Haynes is the co-founder and co-editor of Booked & Screened, covering book-to-screen adaptations, film and TV development.