The Crown star cast as The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo opposite David Oyelowo in new TV adaptation

Sky has announced that it will bring us a brand-new adaptation of Stieg Larsson's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which has previously brought to the screen in a number of film versions.

Larsson's Millennium novels were previously adapted into a series of Swedish films, while The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo was also made into a 2011 Hollywood film directed by David Fincher and starring Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara.

A Swedish miniseries has also been produced, as has another American film in 2018, based on Larsson's characters, titled The Girl in the Spider's Web.

That film starred The Crown's Claire Foy as central character, Lisbeth Salander, and now that role will be taken on by another The Crown alum.

In fact, it will be played by Viola Prettejohn, who played a younger version of Foy's Queen Elizabeth, as seen in season 6.

Prettejohn will lead the cast of a new Sky series adaptation, titled The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, which will also star Silo's David Oyelowo, playing journalist Mikael Blomkvist.

The eight-part series will be produced by Left Bank Pictures (The Crown, Dept. Q), and is described as a "timely evolution of one of the world’s most celebrated literary thriller franchises".

The synopsis says: "Based on the first novel in the Millennium series, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo follows cancelled star journalist Mikael Blomkvist and uncompromising hacker Lisbeth Salander as they investigate the disappearance of Harriet Vanger, who vanished more than three decades ago from the secluded island home of one of Sweden’s most powerful industrial dynasties.

"As they delve deeper into the Vanger family’s buried past, their investigation draws them closer to a chilling threat unfolding dangerously close to them in the present."

The series is being written and executive produced by Amanda Coe (Apple Tree Yard), Steve Lightfoot (The Punisher) and Angela LaManna (The Haunting of Bly Manor), while Reinaldo Marcus Green (King Richard), Andrea Harkin (Time) and Amy Neil (Hostage) will direct, as filming commences next month in Lithuania.

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Meghan Lyvers, managing director, Scripted Originals, Sky, said in a statement: "Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist are two of modern fiction’s most iconic and compelling characters, and we’re thrilled to have Viola and David bringing them to life for a new generation.

"Our brilliant writing team, Reinaldo Marcus Green’s bold vision and our fantastic partners at Left Bank Pictures are creating a series that honours everything audiences love about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, while taking its characters, mystery and themes into a world that feels unmistakably of the moment. We can’t wait for audiences to experience it."

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo will air on Sky TV and NOW. You can sign up to NOW from £4.99 a month.

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Authors

James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.