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If you paid attention during Taylor Swift's Eras Tour documentary, then you might have noticed her listening to an audiobook — and that her novel of choice was The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (funny enough, that was also one of the Brit + Co team's book club picks!).
Well, Netflix announced that the book is getting the TV treatment — and they just revealed Stranger Things actress Maya Hawke (who played Robin on the hit series) will star in a leading role.
“We love making TV and can’t wait to bring The God of the Woods to life with our partners at Sony and Netflix,” showrunners Liz Moore and Liz Hannah tell Netflix. “We hope everyone falls in love (and hate) with these characters as much as we have.”
Here's everything we know about God of the Woods, coming to Netflix soon.
Is The God of the Woods a series?
Amazon
The God of the Woods is being adapted into a TV series for Netflix, but right now the book is a standalone novel.
Who's in The God of the Woods cast?
Netflix
Maya Hawke (who you might recognize from Stranger Things or PBS' Little Women) stars as Judy Luptack, who's the first woman investigator at the Bureau of Criminal Investigation. Everything changes for Judy when she's assigned to the disappearance of Barbara Van Laar from a summer camp in the Adirondack mountains in upstate New York.
Who are the characters in The God of the Woods?
The God of the Woods features a full cast of characters, including:
- Barbara Van Laar: a 13-year-old girl who feels like the black sheep of her family and goes missing from her summer camp.
- Peter “Bear” Van Laar IV: Barbara's brother who went missing when he was 8 years old. Their family never quite got over it.
- Alice Van Laar: Barbara and Bear's mom, Peter III's wife, and Delphine's sister.
- Judy Luptack: a female state trooper who's assigned to Barbara's case.
- TJ Hewitt: the camp director (and Vic's daughter), who has a close relationship with Barbara.
- Louise Donnadieu: Barbara's camp counselor and John Paul's fiancée who's hiding a few secrets of her own.
- Peter Van Laar III: Bear and Barbara's father.
- Vic Hewitt: TJ's dad, who was camp director before she took over.
- Tracy Jewell: Barbara's new bunkmate at camp who quickly becomes a close friend.
- Denny Hayes: Judy's senior investigator who has a history with Louise's mom.
- Jacob Sluiter: A serial killer who's blamed for Bear's disappearance.
- John Paul McLellan Jr.: Louise's fiancé and Peter and Alice's godson.
- Lee Towson: a boy who works in the camp kitchen, and who becomes a suspect in Barbara's disappearance.
Where can I watch The God of the Woods?
The God of the Woods is coming to Netflix. The streamer hasn't announced a release date quite yet, but What's on Netflix reports that filming is scheduled for June 2026, meaning we could see the show in 2027 or 2028.
Is God in the Woods based on a true story?
The God of the Woods is a fictional story, but author Liz Moore revealed Jacob Sluiter is based on a real serial killer.
"He's fictional, but he's based on a real serial killer named Robert Garrow, who haunted the Adirondacks in the 1970s and who kind of haunted my imagination as a kid, although he died just before I was born," she told NPR, before adding that Judy was also inspired by real women. "She's based on the women who were among the first to be promoted to the rank of investigators in the state police of New York...She, like many of the women in this book, is up against certain expectations about the way she should look and act. But also, by virtue of the fact that she's a woman, she's able to access certain information that some of her male colleagues are not able to access. And certain characters in the book trust her in a way that they don't trust the men."
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