Highlights:
- Helen Mirren says she would instantly return for a sequel to The Thursday Murder Club.
- The film stars Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Celia Imrie and Ben Kingsley as amateur detectives.
- Richard Osman’s bestselling series already has three sequels in print, with another due this year.
- Mirren praised her chemistry with Brosnan and her long friendships with Kingsley and Imrie.
Mirren open to sequels
Helen Mirren has revealed she would jump at the chance to reprise her role in Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of The Thursday Murder Club.
The Oscar-winning actress stars alongside Pierce Brosnan, Celia Imrie and Ben Kingsley in the crime comedy based on Richard Osman’s bestselling novel. The story follows four pensioners in a retirement village who band together to solve the murder of a local property developer.
Mirren said filming was such an enjoyable experience that she would return for more without hesitation. “(I’d do another) in a nanosecond. And it would be the team getting back together, which would be great. We did have a wonderful time shooting this. So all of us would jump at the chance, quite honestly,” she told Radio Times.
Osman’s books pave the way
Richard Osman has published three follow-ups to The Thursday Murder Club — The Man Who Died Twice, The Bullet That Missed and The Last Devil to Die — with another instalment due later this year. The ready-made sequels boost the chances of the film being developed into a series.
Bonding with co-stars
Celia Imrie, Sir Ben Kingsley, Dame Helen Mirren and Pierce Brosnan attend The Thursday Murder ClubGetty Images
The 80-year-old actress also reflected on the friendships and professional ties behind the film’s ensemble cast. “Ben and I started out together in the Royal Shakespeare Company, both ambitious and obsessed. Celia and I became really good friends on Calendar Girls. Pierce is my wonderful late discovery. I’d like to work with Pierce for the rest of my life. I feel that we have a real chemistry.”
Mirren and Brosnan have since reunited for the crime drama series MobLand.
Release date
The Thursday Murder Club will have a limited cinema run before arriving on Netflix on 28 August.
When AI takes over podcasts human creators are struggling to keep up iStock 
How mass-produced AI podcasts are drowning out real human voicesiStock
When cheap AI shows flood the market small creators lose their edgeiStock
Can human podcasters survive the flood of robot-made showsiStock
