A new TV adaptation of Swedish author Stieg Larsson’s bestselling novel “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” part of the author’s Millennium novel series, is in development at Sky Studios. The series is described as a contemporary reimagining of the Nordic noir classic centered on hacker Lisbeth Salander and journalist Mikael Blomkvist.
This is far from the first adaptation we’ve seen of the various books in the Millennium novels, but it’ll be the first time we’ll see it in an episodic format.
Unfortunately, it’s still early days so no release date has been announced for the series. But make sure to bookmark this article because we’ll provide an update as soon as we know anything.
The books
As of late 2026, the Millennium novel series comprises eight novels. Larsson, who wrote the first three novels, originally planned to write 10 books with Lisbeth and Mikael at the center, but he died in 2004 before the first book could even be published. He managed to write the first three books before his death—“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” “The Girl Who Played with Fire” and “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest,” published in 2005, 2006 and 2007, respectively.
Because Larsson’s death at age 50 was unexpected, he died without a legal will, meaning his estate, including control of his intellectual property, went to his father and brother. This sparked a legal battle between his family and Eva Gabrielsson, his longtime partner whom he never married and therefore didn’t have a legal claim to his $30 million estate or rights to his works.
After Larsson’s death, his publisher tasked author David Lagercrantz to write three more books in the series—“The Girl in the Spider’s Web” in 2015, “The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye” in 2017 and “The Girl Who Lived Twice” in 2019.
Author Karin Smirnoff then picked up the series, writing “The Girl in the Eagle’s Talons” in 2022 and “The Girl with Ice in her Veins” in 2024. She plans to write a third book.
Larsson’s series was a major breakthrough for spreading Nordic noir thrillers beyond Scandinavian borders, breaking international sales records and sparking a slew of adaptations.
The story
With eight books, the possible plot elements that could be drawn from for the new television series could spread across multiple titles. We’ll focus on the first book.
Mikael Blomkvist is a disgraced journalist who is trying to improve his image by investigating a 40-year-old missing persons case. The elderly Henrik Vanger, the retired CEO of the powerful Vanger Corporation wants Mikael’s help solving the disappearance of his grand-niece, Harriet Vanger.
Blomkvist connects with the young hacker Lisbeth Salander, who is herself troubled by a traumatic past. She’s brilliant with computers, has a photographic memory and is a bit of a loner with a strong sense of justice.
The dangerous investigation sends the two protagonists across Sweden, linking Harriet’s fate to a string of gruesome murders and dark Vanger secrets.
The cast
- Viola Prettejohn stars as Lisbeth Salander, the titular girl with a dragon tattoo. Her previous roles include playing young Princess Elizabeth in “The Crown,” fake Ciri in “The Witcher” and a different Princess Elizabeth in the recent “Amadeus” series. She’s also been cast in an upcoming adaptation of “The Temptation of Gracie.”
- David Oyelowo is the journalist Mikael Blomkvist. He’s had a long career; some of his notable roles in adaptations include the lead in “Lawman: Bass Reeves,” for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe; the Apple TV series “Silo;” and as Long John Silver in the recently released “Treasure Island.” He’s next set to star in an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s “Othello” with Cynthia Erivo and Rachel Brosnahan.
- Jonathan Price will play retired CEO Henrik Vanger. He’s also a “Crown” alum, having played the elder version of Prince Philip. He’s also in “Slow Horses” and was the high sparrow in “Game of Thrones.”
- Lena Olin plays Isabella Vanger, who was married to Henrik’s nephew. She previously appeared in “Chocolat,” for which she was nominated for a BAFTA Award; “The Unbearable Lightness of Being,” which earned her a Golden Globe nomination; and “Queen of the Damned.”
- James D’Arcy plays Martin Vanger, the new CEO of Vanger Industries, Henrik’s grand-nephew and Isabella’s son. His previous adaptations include “Oppenheimer,” “The Canterville Ghost” and various Marvel titles in which he voices Iron Man’s AI butler, Jarvis. He’s set to appear in the upcoming Agatha Christie adaptation, “Hercule.”
- Other cast members include Camille Cottin, Alun Armstrong, Jessica Raine, Paul Ready, Ariyon Bakare, Lee Ross, Steve Wall, Justin Salinger, Allan Corduner, Rochenda Sandall, Naomi Townsend, Ingrid Keighly, Danny Horn, Lucy Brown, Alastair Natkiel, Ewan Labram, Joseph Mason-Coombs, Daniella Arthur-Kennedy, Enzo Cilenti, Donall O Healai and Lochlann O Mearain.
Behind the scenes
- Amanda Coe (“Black Narcissus”), Steve Lightfoot (“Behind Her Eyes”) and Angela LaManna (“The Haunting of Bly Manor”) are writing the series and executive producing.
- Reinaldo Marcus Green (“The Punisher: One Last Kill”) is lead director, with Andrea Harkin (“A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms”) and Amy Neil (“The Buccaneers”) also directing.
Other Millennium novel adaptations
This marks the third adaptation—and first TV series—based on the books written by Larsson, who died in 2004 before any of the books were published. He wrote the first three books but ultimately planned for 10. David Lagercrantz wrote Books 4–6, and Karin Smirnoff has written two more and plans to write a third.
The first trilogy of films based on Larsson’s books were released in Swedish in 2009 starring Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth and Michael Nyqvist as Mikael. They included “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” “The Girl Who Played with Fire” and “The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest.”
David Fincher directed an English-language remake of the first book in 2011, starring Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig. The same team planned to continue with adaptations of the second two books, but they never came to fruition.
Another effort to revive the franchise in English, “The Girl in the Spider’s Web,” was directed by Fede Alvarez in 2018 and starred Claire Foy and Sverrir Gudnason. That book was the first written by Lagercrantz.
About the writer
Danielle Haynes is the co-founder and co-editor of Booked & Screened, covering book-to-screen adaptations, film and TV development. She read the first three books and loved the three Swedish adaptations, but has been reluctant to wade into the titles not written by Stieg Larsson.
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