Prime Video has released the first official trailer and key art for Scarpetta, a new crime thriller series adapted from the bestselling novels by author Patricia Cornwell, marking a major addition to the streaming service’s 2026 scripted slate. The series will premiere globally on March 11, 2026, streaming exclusively on Prime Video across more than 240 countries and territories.
Produced by Amazon MGM Studios and Blumhouse Television, Scarpetta brings to the screen a literary franchise that has sold more than 120 million copies worldwide since its debut in 1990. The adaptation has been developed and written for television by Liz Sarnoff, with production also involving Blossom Films, Comet Pictures, and P&S Projects.
The series stars Academy Award winner Nicole Kidman as Dr. Kay Scarpetta, a renowned medical examiner whose meticulous forensic work and moral resolve have made her one of crime fiction’s most enduring characters. Kidman also serves as an executive producer on the project. Opposite her is Academy Award winner Jamie Lee Curtis, who portrays Scarpetta’s sister, Dorothy Farinelli, a relationship that plays a central role in the series’ emotional and narrative arc.
Scarpetta follows its titular protagonist as she works to “serve as the voice of the victims, unmask a serial killer, and prove that her career-making case from 28 years prior isn’t also her undoing.” The story is set against the backdrop of contemporary forensic science while also probing the psychological toll exacted on those who pursue justice in the face of violence and long-buried secrets.
Under Sarnoff’s leadership as showrunner and executive producer, the series unfolds across two timelines. The narrative traces Scarpetta’s early career in the late 1990s, when she first rose to prominence as a chief medical examiner, and contrasts it with her present-day return to her hometown, where she resumes her former role while investigating a brutal murder. The dual structure allows the series to examine both professional ambition and personal reckoning, as past decisions reverberate into the present.
As Scarpetta navigates a complex investigation, she is also forced to confront strained family ties, unresolved grudges, and secrets that threaten to dismantle the life and reputation she has built. Central among these challenges is her fraught relationship with Dorothy Farinelli, played by Curtis, which adds a layer of domestic tension to the procedural framework.
The ensemble cast includes Emmy winner Bobby Cannavale as Detective Pete Marino, Emmy nominee Simon Baker as FBI profiler Benton Wesley, and Academy Award winner Ariana DeBose as Lucy Farinelli Watson, Scarpetta’s technologically adept niece. Supporting roles are played by Rosy McEwen, Amanda Righetti, Jake Cannavale, and Hunter Parrish, who portray younger versions of the principal characters in the series’ earlier timeline.
Behind the camera, filmmaker David Gordon Green directed five episodes and serves as an executive producer alongside Amy Sayres. Additional executive producers include Per Saari, Jason Blum, Jeremy Gold, Chris Dickie, and Chris McCumber, with Cornwell herself involved through P&S Projects.
For Prime Video, Scarpetta represents a high-profile investment in prestige crime drama, leveraging established intellectual property and top-tier creative talent. With its global release strategy and star-driven production, the series is positioned to attract both long-time fans of Cornwell’s novels and new audiences seeking character-driven thrillers.
The release of the trailer and key art offers the first public glimpse of a project that has been decades in the making, setting the stage for one of Prime Video’s most anticipated premieres of 2026.
