The Perfect Couple is another sensational Netflix Series is about Amelia Sacks (Eve Hewson), a young bride-to-be of a man in one of the Nantucket’s most influential families. Her soon-to-be mother-in-law, Greer Garrison Winbury (Nicole Kidman), is a famous novelist who prepares a very posh wedding. Yet, the lovely party atmosphere is soon overshadowed by a tragedy of which a body is found washed ashore. Instead of a happy day, it turns into a nightmare where past secrets come to the surface, and everyone becomes suspicious of each other, the ideal family.
Throughout the course of the series and specifically in the murder mystery, Family closely examines the themes of family, family entropy, greed, betrayal, and privilege. The suspense rises as the distinct line between what is and what is not real is thinning, which is quite fitting since the protagonist is a writer of fiction books. The Perfect Couple thriller that has assembled crews of stars and an interesting plot that makes your heart race. The series created by Emmy and Oscar winner Susanne Bier with Nicole Kidman, Eve Hewson, and Liev Schreiber is a real example of an interesting series with a lot of suspense and drama. But as viewers immerse themselves in the world of Nantucket’s elite, many are left wondering: Is the movie based on a real life story?
Is The Perfect Couple Based on a True Story?
While The Perfect Couple is full of suspense and has a realistic setting but it is not based on a true story. The Story is based on Elin Hilderbrand’s 2018 novel of the same name which is chief assembly of the limited series. Hilderbrand, who is often hailed as ‘the princess of beach reads,’ is famous for the choice of the setting of her books – the beautiful island of Nantucket which is also the author’s home. However, one of them is exotic because The Perfect Couple was the first one to deal with her for the murder mystery genre which is quite different from romance.
While developing the plot, the author relied on her knowledge of Nantucket and its upper class, which gives a realistic setting for the events. But still the story – the murder, the characters, everything which they have inside – is only invented.
Thus, Hilderbrand did inject her personal experiences in the work, especially in the case of presenting Greer as a four-stage breast cancer patient. Hilderbrand, a breast cancer survivor, also wanted to write for the community of cancer survivors and readers she has come across in her life, therefore giving this character a voice and true story. she incorporated her experience into her writing. She shares how this week marks the fourth anniversary of her treatment for stage one breast cancer and explains how she wanted to write about breast cancer but wasn’t ready until recently.
The idea of transforming The Perfect Couple novel to the big screen started in 2019 when there were plans for the film adaptation at Fox Entertainment. To adapt the novel, Jenna Lamia, who has worked for the show Good Girls was hired. In the following year in 2022, Netflix approved the project for calling as a six-part series where Susanne Bier is set to direct the series; additionally, you will see Nicole Kidman as a leading character as well as an executive producer.
Susanne Bier who directed acclaimed films and series like The Night Manager and Bird Box is a director of this film, and she has done a good job overall, particularly, she embodied the ideas of the intense emotional drama in The Perfect Couple. That is why she paid a lot of attention to the cast and the overall vision of the series to have a perfect balance of mystery and great portrayal of characters.
Jenna Lamia who wrote the adaptation and was the showrunner of the series played a big part in translating the novel by Elin Hilderbrand. She introduced some changes from the book obviously changing the name of bride according to the flow of the story in the TV series. Lamia was looking forward to work on a piece that has such genres as mystery, drama and different emotions involved in the show, she was happy to be working with such great cast and crew.
Thus, although it is quite close to the novel, there are certain differences between series and the novel and they were introduced during the process of adaptation. For instance, while the novel has the the bride’s name Celeste Otis, the series altered the name to Amelia Sacks. Because Nicole Kidman was Celeste in Big Little Lies and they wanted to avoid confusion. These changes were done to fit the flow of the show’s story line as part of the creative process.
The Perfect Couple is filled with suspense and it teaches readers about the dangers of judging a book by its cover and about the secrets that the rich might be hiding. Although the series has a rather realistic background, it is a purely fictional piece created by Elin Hilderbrand. Ultimately, this series is a drama that mostly gives fans the suspense and mystery they want while giving viewers an engaging plot that will keep them glued to their seats until the end.
The Perfect Couple features an all-star cast led by Nicole Kidman as Greer, a glamorous novelist and mother of the groom, and Liev Schreiber as her dashing husband, Tag. Eve Hewson plays Amelia, the bride marrying into the wealthy Winbury family, while Billy Howle stars as Benji, her groom. Dakota Fanning and Jack Reynor portray Benji’s siblings, Abby and Thomas. Meghann Fahy is Amelia’s best friend, Merritt, and Ishaan Khatter plays Benji’s best man, Shooter. The series also includes Mia Isaac as Chloe, a local server, Sam Nivola as the youngest Winbury, Will, Michael Beach as the chief of police, Dan, Donna Lynne Champlin as detective Nikki, and Isabelle Adjani as family friend Isabel.
The Perfect Couple Filming Locations: Where was The Perfect Couple Filmed?