The charming residents of Cooper’s Chase are solving mysteries on Netflix, but if you’ve read Richard Osman’s ‘Thursday Murder Club,’ prepare for some unexpected twists! The movie adaptation makes some major changes to the plot and characters that even the cleverest armchair detective might not see coming. How do you think the film’s new direction will impact the beloved story?

The highly anticipated Netflix adaptation of Richard Osman’s “Thursday Murder Club” brings the beloved senior detective quartet to life, yet surprisingly deviates from its literary source material in several key plot points and character arcs, potentially leaving loyal readers with a new mystery to solve: what exactly changed?

Starring an esteemed ensemble including Helen Mirren as the sharp Elizabeth, Celia Imrie as the jovial Joyce, Ben Kingsley as the thoughtful Ibrahim, and Pierce Brosnan as the charismatic Ron, the film effectively captures the charming dynamic of these armchair detectives. While the quartet’s chemistry shines, Elizabeth’s extensive MI6 background and espionage prowess, a cornerstone of her character in the books, are significantly downplayed, reducing her global-trotting exploits to mere passing mentions.

A major departure concerns the central murder mystery, particularly the intricate web involving Tony, Jason Ritchie (Ron’s son), drug dealers Bobby Tanner, and the book’s character Turkish Johnny/Gianni. In the novel, the crimes are deeply entrenched in a complex drug ring, with Detective Hudson even pursuing leads to Cyprus to track down Gianni in connection to Tony’s murder.

The film, however, streamlines this narrative, completely omitting Johnny and reframing Tony and Bobby Tanner’s illicit activities around immigrant smuggling. Here, they exploit individuals by promising better work and pay in the UK, only to confiscate their passports and force them into servitude. This shift introduces Bogdan, Ian’s new lead builder and Tony’s eventual killer, as an exploited worker seeking his passport to visit his ailing mother, a more localized and perhaps more poignant motivation.

Bogdan’s motive for murder also undergoes a significant revision. In Osman’s book, Bogdan meticulously plans revenge, targeting both Johnny and Tony for their role in the death of his friend, a taxi driver who witnessed a drug deal gone wrong. Crucially, the book’s Bogdan escapes justice, whereas the movie version sees him arrested for the crime, altering a key element of the original narrative’s resolution.

Jason Ritchie, Ron’s ex-boxer son, also experiences a notable transformation in the adaptation. The movie introduces a scene where Jason is arrested on suspicion of Ian’s murder, an event absent from the book. His alibi for this suspicion is revealed to be an affair with Ian’s wife, a less nefarious reason than his entanglement in the drug business, as depicted in the novel.

Another surprising alteration for dedicated book fans is the diminished role of Father Mackie. His heartbreaking backstory, a poignant element of the book, is largely cut from the film, limiting his on-screen presence to just a few brief moments. This reduction, likely for pacing, nonetheless removes a layer of emotional depth present in the original story.

Despite these numerous changes, the film admirably preserves the book’s most shocking and pivotal twist: founding club member and former detective Penny, along with her husband John, are at the heart of the murders. Penny’s act of vigilante justice, where she buried the body of a young man who murdered his girlfriend decades prior, remains central.

John’s desperate attempt to halt the cemetery excavation project to prevent Penny’s past from being exposed, culminating in his murder of Ian, also aligns with the book. However, both versions maintain Bogdan’s unintentional role in uncovering the unmarked bones, ultimately flagging the Thursday Murder Club and rendering John’s efforts futile, thus delivering a consistent, albeit circuitous, path to the truth.