Anya Taylor-Joy returning to Netflix (no, it's not The Queen's Gambit season 2)

It's been four years since Anya Taylor-Joy had her massive breakout moment with the Netflix original limited series The Queen's Gambit. While some fans have held out hope for a possible second season of the acclaimed series that earned Taylor-Joy an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe win, she's now reuniting with Netflix for a new thriller series.

On Aug. 21, Netflix announced at the Edinburgh TV Festival that Taylor-Joy will star in and executive produce in the series How to Kill Your Family, an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Bella Mackie. The British series, which hasn't been designated as "limited" by Netflix, will contain eight episodes in its first season and be written by Emma Moran.

Anya Taylor-Joy shared her excitement for her upcoming role with Netflix:

"As soon as I turned the last page, I knew I had to be a part of bringing this story to life. After some (light) stalking of the inimitable Bella Mackie, I could not be more thrilled to be collaborating with the team that is executive producers Sally Woodward Gentle, Lizzie Rusbridger, and Emma. I am looking forward to getting our hands even dirtier."

- Anya Taylor-Joy

How to Kill Your Family marks the rising star's first television series role since her memorable starring role in 2020's Netflix phenomenon The Queen's Gambit. Prior to that, Taylor-Joy lent her voice to the streamer's 2019 animated series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance and appeared in multiple episodes of Peaky Blinders. It makes sense to make her TV homecoming at Netflix.

Anya Taylor-Joy starring in How to Kill Your Family series

In How to Kill Your Family, Taylor-Joy will play the killer leading character named Grace. She's the daughter of billionaire Simon Artemis, though she hasn't been able to reap the benefits of his fortune since she's the product of an affair and he's written her and her mother off. However, when her mother passes away, she's again shut out by her "family," leading her to seek revenge in the form of murder.

As readers of Mackie's book know, Grace snaps and picks off her estranged family members one by one, using some interesting and graphic methods to bring them to their... ends. Surely, the series won't shy away from the bloodshed and dizzying camp of the novel, while also balancing out Grace's story with a shred of empathy that could only be possible with a performer as skilled as Anya Taylor-Joy.

While it's exciting that How to Kill Your Family will be soon coming to Netflix, additional castings announcements haven't been made at the time of the series announcement. Likewise, the streamer didn't provide any details on when production would commence. Moran still appears to be working on scripts while casting gets underway for Grace's family and Taylor-Joy films the upcoming movie Sacrifice in September 2024.

It's still too soon to predict when How to Kill Your Family could begin production and ultimately make its premiere on Netflix, but filming could possibly begin as soon as the end of the year or sometime next year for a release on Netflix by late 2025 or sometime in 2026. Of course, those are merely educated guesses, but stay tuned for more details on what's sure to be one of the most highly anticipated new Netflix original series.

Keep checking Netflix Life for more news and updates on How to Kill Your Family.