Few things are more exciting than a good crime story, and plenty of great crime books will serve as the basis for upcoming releases. Whether it is highly anticipated New York Times bestsellers or long-festering pᴀssion projects, there are a number of thrilling and thoughtful crime stories set to receive the big screen treatment in the coming months. Featuring projects from the likes of Darren Aronofsky, Chris Columbus, and Martin Scorsese, several of these upcoming releases look set to become some of the most talked-about movies of 2025 and beyond.
Many of the best crime movies ever were based on books, as fictional thrillers, enthralling non-fiction works, and hilarious capers serve as the basis for filmmakers to make astounding adaptations. With upcoming projects starring the likes of Austin Butler, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Sydney Sweeney, some of the sought-after actors in Hollywood today have exciting crime-based movies on the horizon.
10
Caught Stealing (2025)
Based On: Caught Stealing by Charlie Huston
The upcoming Darren Aronofsky movie Caught Stealing adapts a novel by Charlie Huston and explores a former baseball player who finds himself immersed in criminality in New York in the 1990s. Starring Austin Butler as Hank Thompson, this down-on-his-luck would-be sports star turned lowly bartender soon finds himself in over his head in a life of crime. With supporting roles from Matt Smith, Zoë Kravitz, and Regina King, Caught Stealing is set for release on August 29, 2025.
Produced by Columbia Pictures in ᴀssociation with Protozoa Pictures, Caught Stealing will be distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing (via Variety.) While details are sparse on Caught Stealing, the official logline states this burnt-out ex-baseball player is embroiled in a dangerous struggle for survival amidst the criminal underbelly of 1990s New York City and forced to navigate a treacherous underworld he never imagined.
9
The Housemaid (2025)
Based On: The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
While many will ᴀssociate the director Paul Feig with outrageous comedies like Bridesmaids or the much-maligned 2016 Ghostbusters reboot, he’s tackling a new genre with the upcoming psychological thriller The Housemaid. As an adaptation of the novel by Freida McFadden, this dark crime story follows a struggling woman who is happy to start over as a housemaid for an affluent, elite couple. With Sydney Sweeney as the housemaid Millie, The Housemaid looks set to be a major release this year once it’s released on Christmas Day, 2025.
Featuring a supporting cast including Amanda Seyfried as the wife, Nina, and Brandon Sklenar as the husband, Andrew, The Housemaid book was one of the most thrilling mystery novels of 2022. The screenplay for The Housemaid has been adapted by Rebecca Sonnenshine, whose previous writing credits include episodes of The Vampire Diaries and The Boys.
8
The Woman In Cabin 10 (2025)
Based On: The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware
The Woman in Cabin 10 is an upcoming psychological thriller coming to Netflix in late 2025. Based on the novel of the same name by Ruth Ware, this dark story will tell the story of a journalist covering the maiden voyage of a luxury cruise ship who is convinced she has witnessed a pᴀssenger being thrown overboard despite all the guests and crew being accounted for. With Keira Knightley as the reporter, Lo Blacklock, and Guy Pearce as the businessman cruise owner, Richard Bullmer, the original novel was a thrilling exploration of a strange and unusual mystery.
Coming from director Simon Stone, this Australian filmmaker and actor previously made dramas like The Turning, The Daughter, and The Dig. The Woman in Cabin 10 author has already had several of her works optioned for adaptation as novels, like In a Dark, Dark Wood, The Lying Game, and Zero Days, which are at various stages of the production process for film and TV.
7
Crime 101 (2025)
Based On: Crime 101 by Don Winslow
The upcoming crime movie Crime 101 is based on the novella of the same name by Don Winslow. Following a detective trying to stop a high-level jewel thief, this cunning criminal adheres to a strict set of guidelines he calls “Crime 101,” which allows him to pull off the perfect heist. With a stacked cast including Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Halle Berry, and Barry Keoghan, Crime 101 is set for release in 2025 (via ᴅᴇᴀᴅline.)
Crime 101 is directed by Bart Layton, known for previously directing the thrilling documentary The Imposter and the docudrama heist film American Animals. While Pedro Pascal was originally in talks to star alongside Hemsworth, scheduling conflicts meant that he dropped out of the project. The announcement of Crime 101 came after Amazon won an intense bidding war for the rights to the novella in 2023.
6
The Thursday Murder Book Club (2025)
Based On: The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
The Home Alone, Mrs. Doubtfire, and Harry Potter director Chris Columbus will return with the upcoming crime comedy The Thursday Murder Book Club on Netflix in 2025. This hilarious murder mystery novel was the debut book from British TV presenter and comedian Richard Osman that received rave reviews back in 2020. Telling the story of a group of pensioners setting out to solve a killing, the book blends lighthearted humor with a deeply engaging murder mystery.
The Thursday Murder Book Club features an impressive cast, including Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley, and David Tennant. With Steven Spielberg on board as producer, there’s a lot of star power on display for a British novel set around a retirement village in a ficтιтious village in Kent. As an ensemble comedy that’s sure to deliver laughs and thrills in equal measure, The Thursday Murder Book Club is one of the most exciting upcoming crime novel adaptations.
5
The Devil In The White City (TBC)
Based On: The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
The non-fiction book The Devil in the White City was a historical story presented in a novelistic style to tell the story of a criminal widely considered the first serial killer in the United States. Set around the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, this 2003 book followed the story of World’s Fair architect Daniel Burnham and of H. H. Holmes, the killer in question. While Leonardo DiCaprio first bought the film rights in 2010, the project stalled in development hell for years, although it appears to finally be preparing to enter production (via ᴅᴇᴀᴅline.)
The Devil in the White City is reportedly on the way to being made with DiCaprio and his frequent collaborator Martin Scorsese. While there are no firm details on a release date just yet, the project could be revived with 20th Century, with DiCaprio to star and Scorsese to direct. However, without a script ready or a definitive plan, it might still be some time before it sees the light of day, as Scorsese also has several other projects, such as an upcoming Jesus movie, a Grateful ᴅᴇᴀᴅ biopic, and an adaptation of Marilynne Robinson’s Home in the works.
4
Verity (TBC)
Based On: Verity by Colleen Hoover
The most recent Colleen Hoover adaptation, It Ends With Us, wasn’t exactly smooth sailing, as the behind-the-scenes controversy with its star Blake Lively and director Justin Baldoni continues to play out in both the tabloids and in court. However, Hoover has another movie on the horizon, as an adaptation of her 2018 psychological thriller Verity was first announced in 2020, with Anne Hathaway, Josh Hartnett, and Dakota Johnson joining the production in 2024 (via ᴅᴇᴀᴅline.)
Verity was a New York Times bestseller that followed a struggling writer who is on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime, although things are not as simple as they first seem. The Eyes of Tammy Faye director Michael Showalter is onboard to direct, with a script coming from Nick Antosca after prior drafts from Hoover herself.
3
Kill Your Darlings (TBC)
Based On: Kill Your Darlings by Peter Swanson
The upcoming novel Kill Your Darlings by Peter Swanson has already received word of a film adaptation starring Julia Roberts. Swanson is known for previous works like Eight Perfect Murders, and this new murder mystery novel will trace a marriage in reverse order, attempting to uncover a dark secret in the couple’s relationship. While there was already a 2013 film starring Daniel Radcliffe, also тιтled Kill Your Darlings, the two projects have no connection to one another.
Kill Your Darlings sees Roberts teaming up with Ad Astra director James Gray for this Amazon MGM production (via Hollywood Reporter.) Roberts will star and co-produce alongside the likes of Scott Stuber, whom she recently worked with on Leave the World Behind. As a story that tracks backward through time, Kill Your Darlings will take viewers from events like a fiftieth birthday party, buying their first house, and having a child, all painting a portrait of a marriage defined by a terrible act that they plotted many years before.
2
The Whisper Man (TBC)
Based On: The Whisper Man by Alex North
Alex North’s thrilling mystery novel The Whisper Man looks set to receive a star-studded adaptation on Netflix (via Hollywood Reporter.) This 2019 novel about an abducted eight-year-old, a widowed author, and a decades-old case involving a convicted serial killer was a New York Times bestseller. With major TV stars like Severance’s Adam Scott, The White Lotus’ Michelle Monaghan, and Robert De Niro attached, the film is being produced by AGBO, the banner behind Netflix’s big-budget sci-fi movie The Electric State.
Scott will be playing the widowed author, Monaghan, a lead investigator, and De Niro, a former detective in The Whisper Man. The original book was a creepy, paranoia-ridden exploration of a town filled with secrets and long-forgotten traumas reemerging. No definitive release dates have been confirmed for The Whisper Man.
1
Play Dirty (TBC)
Based On: The Hunter by Richard Stark
Lethal Weapon screenwriter and The Nice Guys director Shane Black is returning with Play Dirty, an upcoming crime movie based on Richard Stark’s 1962 thriller The Hunter (via Hollywood Reporter.) Mark Wahlberg will star as Parker, the professional bank robber featured in several of Stark’s novels. Telling the story of a thief who gets sH๏τ in a major heist, this criminal finds himself embroiled in a situation where he must outsmart a South American dictator, the New York mob, and the world’s richest man.
Wahlberg will be joined by LaKeith Stanfield as Grofield, another character who has appeared in 28 novels by Stark, four of which he was the protagonist of. This is not the first time The Hunter has been adapted for the screen as this novel also served as the basis for Point Blank from 1967, starring Lee Marvin, and the 1999 movie Payback with Mel Gibson.
Sources: Variety, ᴅᴇᴀᴅline, ᴅᴇᴀᴅline, ᴅᴇᴀᴅline, Hollywood Reporter, Hollywood Reporter, Hollywood Reporter
