A television adaptation of the 1987 neo-noir Fatal Attraction is coming to Paramount Plus, and the streaming service has announced plenty of information about the release date, the cast, the trailer, and more. The original Fatal Attraction is an erotic thriller starring Michael Douglas and Glenn Close as a pair of adulterous lovers whose lives become violently entangled. Douglas's Dan Gallagher has a weekend affair with Close's Alex Forrest, but while the successful family man tries to put the relationship behind him, Alex becomes obsessed. It's a psychological thriller that sees Dan contend with his infidelity and the growing danger that Alex’s interest presents to him and his family.

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The original Fatal Attraction was nominated for six Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actress for Glenn Close. The movie is equal parts sexy thriller and home invasion horror. Close is terrifying as a spurned lover, and the Dan character is both sympathetic as he tries to protect his family and detestable as the person who started it all. With the movie being considered a classic, the Fatal Attraction TV series will need to retain a sense of dread and mystery through its season-long arc. Fortunately, details about the show's characters, cast, trailer, and more point to the Fatal Attraction series being a fresh but faithful adaptation.

Fatal Attraction TV Show (2023) Latest News

Lizzy Caplan in Fatal Attraction gazing seductively as she sips on a margarita

The latest news about the Fatal Attraction TV series came in the form of exclusive images, shared by Entertainment Weekly on March 14, 2023. In these five photos from the show, some key relationship moments between Dan (Joshua Jackson) and Alex (Lizzy Caplan) are depicted. The early moments of the relationship are shown with Dan and Alex sharing a drink over dinner together, and another is of the pair smiling as they talk. Two more photos show Dan speaking at some function and sharing a loving moment with his wife at a party.

A major plot point of Fatal Attraction is that Dan’s life is going great when he meets Alex. This makes his infidelity all the more frustrating and the results more sinister. It’s good to see that the Fatal Attraction series will be playing up that angle. The last photo released references how Alex and Dan’s relationship will evolve as the series continues. In the image, Dan is walking through the halls of his office, unknowingly passing Alex, who has a strange look on her face. It’s a sign of what’s to come, with Dan ignoring Alex while she gets closer to his personal life in increasingly bizarre and disturbing ways.

Fatal Attraction TV Show (2023) Release Date

Alyssa Jirrels as Ellen Gallagher in Fatal Attraction.

Paramount Plus announced the Fatal Attraction reboot series will be released on April 30, 2023. The first three episodes of the miniseries will be available upon release for streaming, and the rest will arrive weekly. According to Collider, the Fatal Attraction show is set to have eight episodes, retelling the story of the original movie with more time to explore the plot and characters.

Fatal Attraction TV Show (2023) Cast

Lizzy Caplan as Alex Forrest and Joshua Jackson as Dan Gallagher in Fatal Attraction

The Fatal Attraction TV series has many of the same characters as the movie. In the leading roles, Lizzy Caplan (Masters of Sex) is set to play Alex Forrest, and Joshua Jackson (Dr. Death) co-stars as Dan Gallagher. Amanda Peet has also been cast as Dan’s wife, Beth — the role played by Anne Archer in the movie, for which she earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Rounding out the rest of the main cast is Alyssa Jirrels as Ellen Gallagher, Toby Huss as Mike Gerard, Reno Wilson as Detective Earl Booker, and Brian Goodman as Arthur Tomlinson (via TV Guide).

Fatal Attraction TV Show (2023) Story Details

Lizzy Caplan as Alex Forrest holding a knife in Fatal Attraction.

As a reboot, Fatal Attraction will closely adhere to the movie’s story. With eight episodes, there will be more time to dive into individual characters and backstories. Lizzy Caplan has shared how the Fatal Attraction reboot show will be different, with that in mind. The original movie had an alternate ending, which Glenn Close preferred. In that version, Alex takes her own life, and the character's fight with her mental illness is a larger thematic element at the end. The theatrical ending of Fatal Attraction sees Alex killed by Dan, making her more of a generic crazed-killer character who is taken out like any horror movie villain.

Caplan has said she is interested in portraying the version of Alex from the alternate ending, where she is not simply an evil horror creation. The Fatal Attraction TV series will be from Alex’s perspective, watching the events of the weekend and what happens afterward through her eyes. The 1989 movie is a thrilling story that has more focus on Dan’s life as he tries to avoid admitting his infidelity and keep his family safe from Alex. In the Fatal Attraction TV series, the story can slow down and explore exactly what obsession is and why someone would be so single-minded.

Fatal Attraction TV Show (2023) Trailer

Alex Gallagher looking at Alex Forrest while Beth Gallagher looks on.

Paramount Plus released a trailer for their Fatal Attraction TV miniseries on March 1, 2023. It’s notable that Paramount Pictures was the distributor of Fatal Attraction in 1987 and is the producer and streamer for the series as well. In the show's trailer, a haunting gospel anthem plays over scenes of Alex and Dan’s affair. The chemistry is apparent from just a few scenes, and it looks like there will be multiple moments dedicated to their rapid courtship and steamy affair. Despite how exciting their relationship seems, the trailer pointedly focuses on Caplan’s large eyes and expressive face, which hint at the obsessive personality lurking beneath.

The final scene of the Fatal Attraction TV series' trailer sets up the core tension of the series. Dan walks in on an unaware Beth chatting with Alex. When Beth introduces her husband to Alex, the latter says that they already know each other. Joshua Jackson manages to make his face flicker with fear and worry as Dan suddenly starts to realize what kind of person he’s dealing with. It’s an engaging trailer, and the Fatal Attraction TV series is sure to spend more time on the aftereffects of the affair rather than the affair itself, so flipping the script for the teaser is a smart way to hint at what’s to come for the Gallaghers.