Deadline confirmed that Jessica Harper will play the lead role in Paramount+’s upcoming Fatal Attraction series. Key recurring characters are also set to be played by John Getz (Doom Patrol), Toks Olagundoye (Veep), David Sullivan (The Wilds), and newcomer Isabella Briggs. Lizzy Caplan, Joshua Jackson, Amanda Peet, Alyssa Jirrels, Toby Huss, Reno Wilson, and Brian Goodman have all been confirmed as part of the cast. Harper has had a decades-long cinematic career as an actor and performer.
She was born in Chicago, but most people recognise her from her role in Dario Argento’s Susperia, a 1977 Italian spooky thriller. She then went on to feature in films like Minority Report, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg, and Shock Treatment, the sequel to the Rocky Horror Picture Show. She has also produced many CDs for kids and authored eleven books for kids in addition to her acting career. Harper’s latest acting credits include roles in The Old Man and See. The Fatal Attraction TV series is a reboot of the original 1980s thriller of the same name.
The initial plot saw white-collar worker and book editor Alex (Glenn Close) posed as a dangerous lunatic out to get family man Dan Gallagher (Michael Douglas). After his affair with Alex ends, Dan is faced with protecting his conventional wife and kids from harm. Obviously, it has to be remade for a current audience because it didn’t portray mental illness or women in the workplace accurately. Deadline characterises Harper’s character, Sophie, as “a dryly sarcastic New England immigrant who loves her daughter and granddaughter and enjoys a cocktail” in this reinterpretation.
Sophie is the mother of Beth (Peet). The following actors have been cast in recurring roles on the show: Briggs plays Stella, who is “joyfully effervescent with pleasant feelings,” while Sullivan plays prosecutor Frank Gallardo and Getz plays Beth’s father Warren. Showrunner/Executive Producer/Co-Writer Alexandra Cunningham and Kevin J. Hynes. Amblin Television presidents Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey also serve as executive producers.
The excellent performers who have already been confirmed as part of the cast ensure that this will be a worthwhile production. It is hoped that this updated version will have fewer issues while maintaining the same level of excitement as the original.