The Big Picture

  • Will Trent series captures the essence of the main characters but faces criticism for mismatched physical appearances and accents.
  • Will Trent falls into crime drama clichés with overly dramatic dialogue and unnecessary exposition detracting from the plot.
  • Atlanta also serves as a character in the series, with vivid backdrops and settings adding to the unique atmosphere of the show.

It's always a gamble when a novel is adapted for the small or big screen. Readers form an impression of the characters in their minds — how they look, sound, walk, interact, and react in their fictional spaces — and invariably, when those characters are brought to life, there's always a chorus of naysayers who protest that what they see on TV or in the movies is nothing like what's present in their minds. This can make it difficult to get the diehard fans of the print medium. Beyond the characters, readers demand that the settings, plots, and themes that keep them turning the page get faithfully transferred to the screen, lest they lose interest completely.

So imagine the daunting task of translating author Karin Slaughter's 11-book series featuring Atlanta Special Agent Will Trent into a weekly television series. For fans who've been glued to the anthology since the first Will Trent novel went to print in 2006, the expectations were high. The good news is that the TV version of Will Trent is likely to please devotees of the novels. There are some things it needs to fix, though, to be a truly great show.

Will Trent TV Show Poster
Will Trent
TV-14
Crime
Drama

Special Agent Will Trent was abandoned at birth and endured a harsh coming-of-age in Atlanta's overwhelmed foster care system. Determined to make sure no one feels as he did, he now has the highest clearance rate.

Release Date
January 3, 2023
Creator
Liz Heldens, Daniel T. Thomsen
Cast
Ramon Rodriguez , Erika Christensen , Iantha Richardson , Jake McLaughlin , Sonja Sohn
Main Genre
Crime
Seasons
2
Network
ABC
Streaming Service(s)
Hulu

'Will Trent' Captures the Essence of the Main Characters

In the first novel in the Will Trent series, "Triptych," author Slaughter describes the intrepid detective as "6′ 3-4, broad shouldered, lanky and strong, with short sandy/dirty-blond hair and large hands." Enter the TV version of Will Trent, actor Ramón Rodríguez, 5' 11, handsome, well-groomed, slim, solidly built, and with wavy black hair. Not exactly the hardcover version of the main character. While the physical appearance of Trent may not match his book counterpart, it quickly becomes clear that Rodríguez embodies Trent's unique, somewhat off-balance presence, and he becomes believable as the quirky detective. Viewers first see Trent at an animal shelter holding a tiny, trembling stray Chihuahua he's found, trying his hardest to get the women behind the desk to take the cute canine off his hands. Like the Will Trent of "Triptych," Rodríguez portrays a character who is stilted, not particularly at ease socially, and certainly not congenial. If Rodríguez doesn't physically embody the Will Trent of the novels, he embodies the character's essence. And readers of Slaughter's novels certainly understand why Trent ultimately takes Betty the Chihuahua home with him. It's not because Trent is an altruist; it's because he knows what it's like to be abandoned.

Credit must be given to Slaughter and the episode's co-writers Liz Heldens and Daniel T. Thomsen for managing to skillfully craft some essential insight into what makes Trent tick within the first few minutes of the show. One big distraction in Rodríguez's portrayal, though, is Trent's accent. Sometimes, Rodríguez lays on a deep woods southern drawl that's so thick, his words are nearly indecipherable. Other times, he sounds like he may be a transplant from the Brooklyn PD. And in some scenes, there's no accent at all, which becomes a big distraction. Rodríguez needs to perfect the Georgian accent from Slaughter's books and stick with it.

Related
'Will Trent's Most Compelling Storyline Happens Before Episode 1
Most television shows save the juiciest bit for the finale. Will Trent is set within the pulpy aftermath.

The other major change the Will Trent series makes is in the casting of Iantha Richardson (most recently of This is Us) as Trent's sidekick Faith Mitchell. In the book series, Mitchell is a white woman. Having a Black actress portray Trent's reluctant partner, however, is a brilliant idea that actually adds depth to the partnership of Mitchell and Trent. Mitchell is a woman without pretense who suffers no fools, and Richardson's portrayal of a smart, but battle-scarred Atlanta cop makes her the ideal bookend for Trent. For the role of Trent's childhood friend and sometimes romantic partner Angie Polaski, Erika Christensen is the most natural fit, deftly playing a woman balancing on the edge of sobriety, beaten, but not yet down for the count. She and Trent engage in a potentially harmful and codependent relationship, but there's also warmth and mutual support in their pairing made stronger by their shared past.

Crime Drama Clichés Tend to Hinder 'Will Trent'

Ramón Rodríguez as Will Trent talking to Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Paul Campano in 'Will Trent'
Image via ABC

While the cast competently brings Slaughter's characters to life, Will Trent has a tendency to fall into standard crime drama clichés, relying heavily on pulp magazine-style dialogue uncharacteristic of the novels. With lines like, "I told him I'd bring my best...that's you," "How's it goin', rat punk," and "You should be out there turning over every stone," the show risks heading into Law and Order territory when it has every opportunity to cast aside the banality. And while a certain amount of backstory setup is needed to establish the show's characters, Will Trent too frequently takes the easy path with unnecessary exposition. In the series' opening episode, as Trent investigates a homicide/missing person case, there's clear antagonism between Trent and a man named Paul Campano (Mark-Paul Gosselaar), the father of the teen girl who's disappeared. The two men eventually come to blows, with Trent blurting out, "Paul and I grew up together in a children's home," to which Campano's wife gasps, "You grew up in an orphanage?!" It's all a bit too convenient, not to mention unnatural. Will Trent could benefit from taking the time to let the reasons behind that adversarial relationship reveal themselves more organically rather than spelling everything out so blatantly.

One aspect of the Will Trent books that keep fans coming back is the singular genius of Trent himself and his ability to see what others can't, to piece together what even the most seasoned detectives can't quite wrap their heads around. The Will Trent TV series almost captures that, but again, takes the easy route more frequently than it should. As Trent arrives at a murder scene in the first episode, he notices a broken window pane to the side of a door. Cops who've been at the location for hours tell Trent the window was broken from the outside so that the intruder could reach in his arm and open the door. It's obvious to any viewer that the broken window pane is about a foot too high for anyone to be able to reach in and grab the door knob, but astonishingly, Trent is the only one who's able to make this crucial observation. The episode gets a bit of redemption when Trent examines a single bloody footprint on a stair and deduces that it was an impression left as a body was being carried out of the house, not into it, then determines that something as innocuous as the faint smell of urine in an upstairs closet means the alleged victim was hiding inside. The series' writers need to continue to play up these more intriguing moments if they want viewers to keep coming back.

'Will Trent' Features the City of Atlanta as a Character

Slaughter's books feature the city of Atlanta and the state of Georgia like characters themselves. Slaughter's backdrops and settings are painted so vividly, readers can almost feel the intense stickiness of the summer air making Trent's 3-piece suits cling to him like wet washcloths. They can practically smell the leaves of the black walnut trees as Trent trudges through Georgia's wooded areas in search of clues. The Will Trent series recreates this atmosphere well, bathing scenes in a sepia tint that gives the feeling of the thick, sweltering Georgia heat, all while filling the TV screen with familiar shots of the Atlanta cityscape. Slaughter herself wanted location shooting for the series, saying in a recent Distractify interview, "It's really fantastic for me to be in Atlanta and to see the show grounded in Atlanta...showing the city and the different neighborhoods and just how things are...I love it." Looking back on classic crime series like Magnum P.I. and Vegas, it's true that location can be as much of a draw for viewers as the shows' plot lines, and Will Trent wisely takes full advantage. With the catchy, soulful soundtrack that accompanies the first episode's scenes, Will Trent establishes its unique perspective in the crime genre.

Will Trent's Vulnerability Makes the Show Compelling

Will Trent works best when it focuses on Trent himself in his private moments, outside the comfort zone of his profession. The series' premiere episode was most compelling in its final scene as Trent and Angie reunite in his home, new pet doggy, Betty, by his side. In a romantic moment, Angie begins to remove Trent's shirt, but he recoils, showing vulnerability and a bit of embarrassment for the first time. "Hey," Angie says, "it's me," as Trent's shirt comes off and a body full of scars and welts is revealed, alluding to the abuse Trent suffered as a child. Later, Trent is shown trying to read a note, but because he suffers from dyslexia, his frustration gets the better of him. In these moments, Trent is child-like and wounded, not the least bit in control of his world, a jarring contrast from the Trent viewers see in his role as a special agent, but true to the portrayal of Trent in Slaughter's books. If writers continue to highlight these aspects of the main character, Will Trent can become more than another crime drama. It has the potential to be a moving character study, as well.

Finally, Will Trent isn't set up as a series that solves one crime per episode. Like Slaughter's books, Trent's crime solving is carried out as a process. The show's first episode puts some key pieces of the puzzle in place, but audiences will need to keep tuning in to see how and when the case is resolved. It's like a visual page turner, faithful to Slaughter's books, where viewers learn more with every episode, and a sound approach, especially since Will Trent is an adaptation of a series of novels and not just a single book. As the details of the crime investigation unfold, so do the stories of Will Trent's characters, and this could make for some solid "must see" TV.

Will Trent is streaming on Hulu in the U.S.

WATCH ON HULU