It’s going to be a banner year for film adaptations of classic novels! Here’s the rundown of offerings planned for release in 2026:
On Television
A six-part series of Pride and Prejudice is coming to Netflix this autumn.
The Other Bennet Sister, a 10-part BBC television drama focusing on Mary Bennet, is set to air this year.
A new tv adaptation of Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre is under development. Mr. Rochester has not yet been cast.
The Count of Monte Cristo, a TV adaptation of Alexandre Dumas’ novel, begins airing on PBS in March.
At the Movies
Wuthering Heights, the dark tale of obsession by Emily Bronte, is out in theaters now.
Upcoming Pride and Prejudice tv adaption cast. (photo by Ludovic Robert)
I’m curious to see the new Jane Eye and Pride and Prejudice productions. And I definitely want to watch The Count of Monte Cristo. (I keep wanting to type ‘Crisco’ but I’ll keep my baking hobby out of this!)
The score card favors Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters. No Charles Dickens or Thomas Hardy?
Sadly, there is also no Elizabeth Gaskell adaptation in the works either. It’s been over twenty years since a Gaskell novel was adapted into film.
And it’s been almost ten years since I wrote a blog piece detailing why I would absolutely love to see Gaskell’s first novel, Mary Barton, made into a tv series. There are many similarities to North and South.
The BBC’s Nicholas Higgins from Gaskell’s North and South would also make a great John Barton.
I would be excited to have the BBC hire Sandy Welch to screen write this gritty novel. There is so much potential. And so much drama, including:
murder
love triangle
factory fire
boat race
court trial
The image above of Brendon Coyle as Nicholas Higgins could also easily be a photo of John Barton, Mary’s father in the novel.
Mary Barton is the classic novel I most want to see made into film.
What film adaptations would you love to see?