Netflix reveals the release date for its 8th installment in the best shared universe everybody watches but nobody talks about

It goes without saying that shared universes and sprawling mythologies remain all the rage these days, although Fool Me Once heralds the arrival of the eighth series in an ever-expanding Netflix catalogue that everybody watches but nobody ever seems to talk about.

Tying down prolific author Harlan Coben to an exclusive development deal – to a certain extent, anyway – has proven to be a masterstroke by the streaming service, which has reaped the rewards of seven hugely popular original shows hailing from multiple different countries that always tend to find favor among critics and audiences, all while racking up those all-important viewing figures.

Soft-launcher Safe was quickly followed by The United Kingdom’s The Stranger and Stay Close, Poland’s The Woods and Hold Tight, Spain’s The Innocent, and France’s Gone for Good, with Fool Me Once heading back to Britain to trace the story of Michelle Keegan’s former soldier and war veteran, dealt another blow by the brutal murder of her husband.

However, when she catches Richard Armitage’s decidedly not dead spouse on the nanny cam in their daughter’s bedroom, she ends up being drawn into a sprawling mystery that’s going to be packed to the brim with twists and turns if Netflix’s previous Coben adaptations are any indication.

Production wrapped a while back, but the platform has finally confirmed that Fool Me Once will premiere on Jan. 1 of next year, so everybody can ring in 2024 the best way possible; by bingeing their way through a Netflix original that’s virtually impossible to stop watching once you’ve started.