‘Murder by The Book’: Retta and ‘Good Girls’ Creators Reunite for New Mystery Series!!

A new mystery series is on its way to NBC with network staple Retta attached to play the lead. Per The Hollywood Reporter, Murder by The Book has just received an official pilot order from NBC following a development process that kicked off last fall. The upcoming show is set to reunite the trio of Retta, Jenna Bans, and Bill Krebs who all worked together on NBC‘s hit crime comedy-drama, Good Girls.

Retta will play the yet-unnamed lead character who is described as a big-city book reviewer who has garnered Instagram fame for her take on several mystery books. The show will follow her as she decides to apply the knowledge she’s gathered from these books to solve a real-life crime seeing her become “an unlikely detective to uncover the shocking truths about an eccentric seaside town.” Retta is no stranger to crime plots. Her time on Good Girls saw her play one of the trio of Michigan mothers who find themselves going down a rabbit hole after financial hardship forces them to engage in criminal activities. Good Girls blended crime with comedy to deliver an enthralling series that lasted for four seasons. Retta‘s performance was one of the stand-outs of that show, and it is no surprise to see her re-teaming with Good Girls showrunners for a project exploring the same genre.

“We learned on Good Girls that Retta can be as heartbreaking as she is funny, so we wanted to create a starring vehicle that would highlight her amazing range,” Bans and Krebs said in a statement back when the show was announced to be in development last fall. Both Bans and Krebs will write the pilot for Murder by The Book and continue as writers and executive producers should the show get picked up by NBC. Retta whose NBC portfolio also includes the political satire sitcom, Parks and Recreation, last year, inked a one-year talent holding deal with NBC Universal suggesting that she could have more projects in the works with the network. She recently wrapped filming for Richard Linklater‘s upcoming action comedy, Hitman which also stars Glen Powell and Adria Arjona. Her previous film credits include Father Figures and Good Boys.

Bans and Krebs have been longtime collaborators dating back to Ban‘s stint at ABC Studios where they worked together on The Family. Bans will be producing Murder by the Book under her production banner Minnesota Logging Company as part of her ongoing overall deal with Universal TV. In addition to starring, Retta will serve as a non-writing executive producer. Casey Kyber will equally executive produce for Bans‘ Minnesota Logging Co. Stay tuned at Collider for timely updates on the project as they develop.