If you’ve recently watched Death on the Nile and are longing for Hollywood's next Agatha Christie adaptation, you won’t have to wait long. Collider is excited to premiere the trailer for BritBox's newest limited series, Why Didn't They Ask Evans?, based on the Christie novel of the same name and following two amateur detectives who get in way over their heads when they come across a murder with incredibly difficult clues.
The trailer for Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? reveals that we can look forward to a mysterious and dryly funny story that begins with the very words from the title: the words the murder victim says moments before dying. The question prompts the start of an investigation led by Bobby Jones (Will Poulter), the son of a small-town vicar, and whip-smart socialite Frankie Derwent (Lucy Boynton), but of course, no easy answers will come of it.
The limited series will spread its story across three episodes, all of them written, directed and produced by ten-time Emmy nominee Hugh Laurie, who also stars in a supporting role. Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? is a passion project for Laurie, who’s writing for a TV series for the first time since 1995’s A Bit of Fry and Laurie — a sketch comedy show starring himself and Stephen Fry. The series also marks Laurie’s return to directing — he last helmed an episode of his hit series House, M.D. a decade ago.
Back in 2021, when the project started, Laurie told Deadline he's been a fan of the 1934 novel ever since he was a child, and was beyond excited to get to work on the story:
“The hairs on the back of my neck haven’t properly settled down from the first time I grasped the beauty of the essential mystery. Since then, I have fallen deeper and deeper in love with the characters, and feel immensely honoured to have been given the chance to retell their story in this form.”
Aside from Poulter and Boynton, the star-studded cast of Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? also features Emma Thompson, Conleth Hill, Amy Nuttall, Alistair Petrie, Morwenna Banks, Joshua James, Maeve Dermody, Daniel Ings, and Jonathan Jules.
Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? premieres on BritBox on April 12. Check out the exclusive trailer below:
You can watch the trailer below:
And check out the show's official synopsis here:
Based on the iconic 1934 Agatha Christie novel, the limited-run (three-episode) mystery follows the local Vicar’s son, Bobby Jones (Will Poulter, Dopesick, upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3), and his whip-smart friend, socialite Lady Frances “Frankie” Derwent (Lucy Boynton, Bohemian Rhapsody, The Politician) on their crime-solving adventure after they discover the crumpled body of a dying man who, with his last breath, gasps the cryptic question of the title. Armed only with a photograph of a young woman found in the dead man’s pocket, these amateur detectives pursue, and are pursued by, the answer to the mystery.