Harlan Coben is known for keeping readers on their toes with his killer mystery novels — but what inspiration does the author draw from true crime cases?
“I’ll see a case, I’ll look at the headline and maybe that will trigger something. But I never want to go into it,” Coben exclusively said. Us Weekly while promoting his CBS show Harlan Coben’s final twist. “That will almost influence what I’m trying to do.”
Coben noted his preference for original concepts, adding: “I prefer, in the case of fiction, to make up the story from a headline or something else. I’ll say, ‘Well, what if…’ And I’ll have completely changed it.”
Although Coben is aware of true crime cases, he pointed out the big difference
Best-selling author Harlan Coben has provided extensive material for Netflix’s library of original series. The crime and thriller novelist has written 35 novels, of which 12 have been adapted for film and television. Coben currently has a deal with Netflix to pump those heaters for years to come. With his latest adaptation, Harlan Coben’s Lazarus, already (…)
“True crime is about faithfulness to the true story,” he said. “Our hope (with Final twist) was able to work to create a complete story that is absolutely true with the twists and turns in an hour of television time. That was our challenge.”
Harlan Coben’s final twistwhich premieres on Wednesday, January 7, is “driven to discover what makes a killer cross that line.” According to the official synopsisCoben “enters these cases himself, following threads that expose the hidden lives of seemingly ordinary people. Each episode is a new mystery, exploring hidden motives, buried secrets and unanswered questions. Coben focuses on uncovering shocking revelations where nothing is as it seems, and reveals that truth is often stranger than fiction.”
After becoming a best-selling author with more than 100 million books sold and a multitude of film and television adaptations, Coben was interested in exploring the unscripted genre. with his CBS docuseries.
“I’m more intrigued than ever (about true crime after this). It’s a fascinating world, and they say truth is stranger than fiction. Boy, these stories prove it,” the author told Us . “If I had written the first episode, or any of the Final Twist episodes, as a novel or if I had turned it into a TV show, I would have gotten 8 million emails saying, ‘Oh, this is so unreal. That could never happen.’ Of course, that’s all true.”
He continued, “Fiction has to follow certain rules. Reality doesn’t. This is really interesting and I don’t think I appreciated exactly what happens in this. It’s crazy with the twists and turns. It even surprised me while I’m reading it.”
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coben grateful for the opportunity to push yourself as a host.
“It was really weird. I’m used to being behind the camera, so I’d be sitting in the trailer and they’d be like, ‘Okay, we’re calling talent on set.’ I wasn’t even dying. I’m like, ‘Oh, wait. This time we’re talking about me,'” he joked. “It was a very different experience for me. I hope people are kind because it’s my first time doing it. But we felt it was also part of the engine of the show that would help guide you through the story and keep it grounded in a different way.”
As for whether Coben will sign up for more screen opportunities? “Let’s take it one step at a time. I still prefer to write,” Us said. “I still prefer to create things. But I thought this was an interesting experiment and quite fun in its own way. It was interesting to try to do this and try to give people a little bit of something else while we were doing it.”
Harlan Coben’s final twist airs Wednesdays on CBS at 10pm ET.