This Wednesday, September 20, Disney+ added to its catalog a thrilling series adapted from a detective novel by Stephen King, the internationally successful master of horror. The pitch? A manipulative serial killer who taunts a police inspector with a series of macabre missives.
This series has already existed for six years, but its addition to Disney+ should revive its interest among subscribers of the platform with big ears. Baptized Mr Mercedes, based on the eponymous trilogy by the great Stephen King, it follows a breathtaking manhunt to find the author of a series of macabre crimes. Responsible for tracing his whereabouts, Bill Hodges, a retired inspector, hopes to finally be able to close this case which has haunted him for years, but the assassin is not the type to be caught easily. In this series, directors David E. Kelley and Jack Bender stage a dangerous game of cat and mouse, driven by charismatic and convincing actors.
Mr Mercedes : a murky and dark thriller for crime fiction fans
Extended over three seasons – all available on the platform, Mr Mercedes highlights a fierce struggle between two characters. On the one hand, we have Bill Hodges, a depressed and alcoholic retired cop, responsible for tracking down the perpetrator of a bloody massacre that left dozens dead and injured by driving into the crowd with a his Mercedes. The assassin in question, a certain Brady Hartfield, sends a series of sordid letters and emails to Hodges, who then becomes the target of a perverse game from which he will not emerge unscathed. With a screenplay written by Dennis Lehane (the man behind Shutter Island And Gone Baby Gone), the series co-produced by Stephen King is undoubtedly one of the best adaptations of the author of That.
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Stephen King sings the praises of Mr Mercedes
In a promotional video broadcast in 2020, Stephen King went behind the scenes of the filming of Mr Mercedes. We see the prolific author reading the beginning of his novel behind images from the series, before extolling the merits of this adaptation carried with force and energy Brendan Gleeson, alias Alastor Moody in Harry Potterand Harry Treadaway (The City of Shadows). “It’s very appealing to write about a bad guy like Brady, who is crazy. Brady taunts and provokes Bill Hodges and it turns into a duel of wits between them. It’s a great series”, he then promises viewers. It is now up to you, dear Disney+ subscribers, to form your own opinion on the three seasons of this gripping and uncompromising series.
Article written in collaboration with 6Médias
