Harlan Coben’s upcoming Netflix boasts an all-star cast.

By Abby Robinson

Published: Thursday, 02 November 2023 at 09:01 AM


Harlan Coben’s latest Netflix thriller Fool Me Once, which is based on his best-selling book of the same name, stars Michelle Keegan (Our Girl, Brassic) as Maya Stern, a woman who is reeling from the brutal murder of her husband Joe, played by Richard Armitage (Obsession).

But a secret “nanny cam” installed in her home leads Maya to believe that her husband might still be alive.

The eight part series will arrive on Netflix from Monday 1st January – and the streamer has released another selection of first look images, featuring additional cast Dame Joanna Lumley (Absolutely Fabulous), Adeel Akhtar (Sherwood), Emmett J Scanlan (Peaky Blinders) and Dino Fetscher (Paranoid), which you can see both in the lead image and below.

Fool Me Once. Michelle Keegan as Maya Stern and Richard Armitage as Joe Burkett in Fool Me Once. Cr. Matt SquireNetflix © 2023
Michelle Keegan and Richard Armitage in Fool Me Once
Matt SquireNetflix © 2023

Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com, Coben revealed that Keegan’s character is inspired by a real person he personally spent time with.

“Michelle’s character is a military pilot,” he explained, adding: “A number of years ago, I went on a United Service Organisations tour to talk to soldiers about writing and entertain them to some degree. We went to Kuwait, all over, including a military base in England.

Fool Me Once. Michelle Keegan as Maya Stern in Fool Me Once. Cr. James Stack/Netflix © 2023
Michelle Keegan in Fool Me Once
James Stack/Netflix

“When I was there, I met one of the first female combat helicopter pilots that had served in the Gulf War. She was a big reader and we’d talk for hours on end, and I thought, ‘I need to create a character like this’.

“I’m always looking for a character I haven’t done before – and almost the entire book is written from her perspective.”

Fool Me Once. Michelle Keegan as Maya Stern in Fool Me Once. Cr. Vishal Sharma/Netflix © 2023
Emmett J Scanlan and Michelle Keegan in Fool Me Once
Vishal Sharma/Netflix

Coben went on to say that Maya’s reintegration back into civilian life following her military service plays a big role in Fool Me Once.

Read more:

“What happens when that person is trying to come back into the real world, the distance and the disconnect that they sometimes will feel? How do I throw that into a compelling mystery story?”

Fool Me Once. Adeel Akhtar in Fool Me Once. Cr. Vishal SharmaNetflix © 2023
Dino Fetscher and Adeel Akhtar in Fool Me Once
Vishal SharmaNetflix

Coben also teased “the most shocking ending” to the series, adding: “One of the things I hope we’ve done well for people, and one of the reasons that the shows [I’ve previously done] have been popular, is… you have to actually deliver on the ending.

“It’s sort of a powerhouse emotional ending, and I think our last episode, which is also unusual, is our shortest episode. Rather than try to bloat the finale, we decided we were actually just going to deliver what we wanted to in that finale.”