Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan and Ben Kingsley sign on to The Thursday Murder Club – details

Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan and Ben Kingsley have joined the cast of The Thursday Murder Club. And in another exciting development, Harry Potter and Home Alone filmmaker Christopher Columbus will direct the movie adaptation.

Appearing on The Rest is Entertainment podcast with Marina Hyde, author Richard Osman confirmed the news. "I'm now allowed to officially announce three of the four members of the Thursday Murder Club," he began.

"Elizabeth is going to be played by the person who people most often shout at me in the street as them wanting them to play Elizabeth... Helen Mirren, which is very exciting. Ibrahim is Sir Ben Kingsley. Ron is going to be played by – I'm going to say the most handsome man in the world, so he's going to have to dull himself down a bit... Pierce Brosnan."

Asked about the fourth member of The Thursday Murder Club, Richard noted that casting is still underway. "Joyce we're still in negotiations but again the name is the one that people most shout at me in the street" he said. "Lots more casting to come in the following weeks."

For reference, some of the names thrown into the ring for Joyce Meadowcroft have included Penelope Wilton, Julie Walters, Pauline Collins, Imelda Staunton and Brenda Blethyn. Looks like we'll have to wait and see if the fan predictions were right.

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Meanwhile, Richard concluded that the film will start shooting this summer "from the end of June to September, all in England," and that Christopher Columbus is currently working on the script.

Published in September 2020, The Thursday Murder Club follows four friends living in the retirement village of Coopers Chase who meet up weekly to investigate unsolved murders together.

Following its publication, the novel sold 45,000 copies in its first three days, topping bestseller lists. Richard has subsequently expanded his book series, with 2021's The Man Who Died Twice, 2022's The Bullet That Missed and 2023's The Last Devil to Die. The fifth book in the series is slated for a 2025 release date.