Retta to Star in Murder by the Book From Good Girls Creator
A mini Good Girls reunion is headed to NBC. On Tuesday, reports revealed that the network has given a pilot order to Murder by the Book, a new drama series created by Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs. Retta previously starred on Good Girls, which Bans created and Krebs wrote and executive produced, from 2018 to 2021. Retta's filmography also includes Parks and Recreation, Tuca & Bertie, and Kroll Show. She has had a talent holding deal with NBC Universal, NBC's parent company, since 2022.
Murder by the Book would follow an Instagram famous book reviewer take a page from the murder mystery books she reviews and becomes an unlikely detective to uncover the shocking truths about an eccentric seaside town. The series hails from Universal Television and Bans' Minnesota Logging Company production banner. Bans executive produces and writes along with Bill Krebs, while Retta and Casey Kyber are non-writing executive producers.
What is Good Girls about?
Good Girls follows three suburban Michigan mothers, two of whom are sisters, who are having a hard time trying to make ends meet. They are tired of having everything taken away from them, so they decide to pull off an unlikely heist by robbing a supermarket, only to discover that they are in for more than they expected. Their successful robbery attracts the attention of the store manager after he recognizes one of the women, but for a different reason altogether than just the money, and the attention of a mob gang that served the supermarket as a front. Now caught in a series of gang heists, debts, secrets, and familial crises, the others slowly descend down a path they never thought of going down before.
The series also starred Christina Hendricks, Mae Whitman, Reno Wilson, Manny Montana, Lidya Jewett, Isaiah Stannard, and Matthew Lillard.
Why was Good Girls cancelled?
Good Girls was given the axe by NBC in 2021, even after plans had already started to form around a reduced fifth and final season. According to reports, Retta, Whitman, and Hendricks had agreed to take pay cuts for this reduced season, but talks ultimately fell through after negotiations with Montana.
"[We] very much wanted to bring Good Girls back for one more season to close out the story," an NBC insider acknowledged at the time, "but unfortunately we were unable to make the financials work."
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