Kate Winslet Is Headed to Netflix for a “Thelma & Louise”-Style Vengeance Thriller

Kate Winslet has spent decades moving fluidly between prestige film and television, but she’s never quite tackled anything on Netflix with the scale this next project promises. As one of Britain’s most decorated actresses continues expanding her small-screen résumé, the streamer has now revealed exactly what she’ll be tackling next, and it sounds like a serious departure from her usual dramatic terrain.

That project is “The Unheard,” a new limited series that marks Winslet’s first major Netflix drama. The show reunites much of the creative team behind last year’s Emmy-winning breakout hit “Adolescence,” giving the project instant pedigree before a single frame has even been shot.

Netflix unveiled the series during a panel at the Edinburgh TV Festival, where U.K. content head Anne Mensah described “The Unheard” as a “Thelma & Louise”-style vengeance drama. The five-episode series follows two sisters, played by Winslet and Maxine Peake, who go on the run after what’s described as “an act of vengeance goes wrong,” with the story unfolding as the pair are desperately pursued while the show gradually reveals what pushed them to such a reckless act, and whether escaping consequences was ever actually the plan.

“Adolescence” co-creator Jack Thorne wrote the series and will also serve as an executive producer, working alongside Winslet, who is producing the project herself. Mounia Akl, known for “Costa Brava, Lebanon” and Netflix’s “House of Guinness,” directs the five-part series, adding another layer of buzz given her growing reputation within the streamer’s original programming slate.

The production lineup behind “The Unheard” carries plenty of weight as well. Warp Films, Matriarch Productions, and Brad Pitt’s Plan B are producing, the same combination of companies responsible for “Adolescence’s” critical and awards success. Executive producers include Mark Herbert and Emily Feller for Warp Films, Hannah Walters and Stephen Graham for Matriarch Productions, and Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, and Nina Wolarsky for Plan B, alongside Winslet and Thorne themselves.

Peake, known for her recent role in “Say Nothing” along with earlier standout performances in “Silk” and “Dinnerladies,” rounds out the currently confirmed cast opposite Winslet. With only two lead actresses announced so far, more casting news is expected to surface as Netflix builds out the rest of the ensemble ahead of production.

Filming on “The Unheard” is set to begin in 2027, meaning fans of both Winslet and the “Adolescence” creative team still have some time to wait before the series actually starts shooting. No release window has been announced yet either, though given the level of talent already attached, expectations are already running high.

The announcement arrived alongside several other high-profile Netflix commissions revealed at the same Edinburgh TV Festival panel, including a “Top Boy” spin-off starring Barry Keoghan and a new Roald Dahl short story anthology series featuring Dominic West, Imelda Staunton, and Nicola Coughlan. That slate underscores just how aggressively Netflix continues investing in U.K.-based prestige programming built around recognizable star power and acclaimed source creators.

For Winslet, “The Unheard” represents a chance to headline exactly the kind of tense, morally complicated thriller that’s become increasingly rare on streaming, especially paired with a writer coming off one of the most talked-about television achievements in recent memory.

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