(Credits: Netflix)

When it comes to adaptations, risks come unannounced. But by now, Netflix has learnt to approach the middle ground, holding on to just as much as it lets go. Every showbiz adaptation comes with its fair share of apprehension about the discrepancies that await the book and the movie versions. The Thursday Murder Club is no exception.

Adapted from Richard Osman’s best-selling novel, The Thursday Murder Club was released on Netflix on August 28th. The film follows an eccentric group of detectives, hailing from Coopers Chase, a retirement community. They embark on a murder mystery adventure with three entwined whodunits, one from years past and two in the present.

Directed by Chris Columbus and produced by Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment, The Thursday Murder Club on Netflix, unsurprisingly, has quite a few key differences from the original source. While the avid readers who have watched the film must have already gotten a hunch, this one’s for those who are still out of the loop.

The two immediate murder mysteries that trouble the Thursday Murder Club are those of the Coopers Chase co-owners, who were fighting over signing off the retirement home to the developers. But in the Netflix adaptation, there were quite a few red herrings that made it a tough nut to crack.

Jason Ritchie’s evidence picture, subsequent arrest, and love life

Ron’s celebrity son, Jason Ritchie, portrayed by Tom Ellis, was visible in the picture left behind at the crime scene of Tony Curran, the Coopers Chase co-owner’s murder. The Netflix film, however, took the liberty of cutting him some slack by letting him off the picture. However, his arm tattoo was discovered in the mirror reflection adjacent to Bobby and Tony’s backs, boosting the enigma around the image.

Additionally, PC De Freitas and DCI Chris Hudson don’t arrest Jason in the book, as they aren’t equipped with enough evidence to hold him in custody. Instead, Jason seeks the help of The Thursday Murder Club to chase down the other men in the evidence picture in an attempt to clear his name, as well as to convince himself that he’s not the murderer’s next victim.

Consequently, Jason went out on a date with Karen Playfair, assuming her involvement in Tony’s murder, which could have given her father the perfect opportunity to sell his land on Coopers Chase estate to another person. However, Karen and her father, Gordon, are not even present in The Thursday Murder Club on Netflix. Following Jason’s arrest, he confesses to his affair with Ian Ventham’s wife, providing him with an alibi during Tony’s murder, thanks to that timestamped picture.

Gianni Gunduz

The man behind the infamous picture of Jason, Bobby, and Tony, Gianni Gunduz AKA Turkish Johnny, has a prominent presence in Osman’s book. He’s also their business partner, whom Bobby and Jason believe to have eloped to Cyprus after murdering Tony. However, he’s not present in the Netflix film.

Bobby Tanner’s characterisation

Bobby Tanner is Jason and Tony’s business partner in both versions. However, his character arc is much more passive within the book. He’s far more intimidating in The Thursday Murder Club, who travels the extra mile to spook Elizabeth by having sent a man to the graveyard who says, “don’t wake the dead.” He also sends an intruder with flowers to her home, laced with a threatening message.

Bobby goes by Derek Ward in the film and Peter Ward in the book when Elizabeth confronts him about his part in the murder cases. Bobby is also the third mysterious co-owner of the retirement home, who’s desperate to sell the property to earn money. If it weren’t for him, the club wouldn’t have known about their illegal scheming of holding Eastern European workers’ passports.

Joyce accompanies Elizabeth in the book during the tense confrontation. However, the latter goes all alone in The Thursday Murder Club, twisting the situation in her favour by promising not to rat him out to the police in exchange for selling Coopers Chase to an investor of their choice.

The TCM necklaces

Elizabeth, Ibrahim, and Ron’s affiliation with The Thursday Murder Club is clear with their TCM gold necklaces. Penny was the fourth member of the club, who is currently in hospice. As a result, Elizabeth chooses Joyce to be the fourth teammate of the club when the film commences. Joyce finally receives her own necklace following a major unveiling in the movie. These scenes were not present in the novel.

Father Mackie’s involvement

Father Mackie’s presence in the novel had a tragic crux.

While that connected with his reasons behind derailing the development plans on the graveyard, he wasn’t the murderer. But his involvement is much reduced in the Netflix adaptation. He only appears during the protest at the graveyard and doesn’t pitch in overtly to the central mystery.

Bogdan Janowski’s arc

Bogdan Janowski was the one to find the second skeleton in the graveyard. The details are maintained in The Thursday Murder Club movie and novel. He was Tony’s handyman in both cases, who admitted to murdering Tony to Elizabeth’s wife, Stephen. On the verge of succumbing to dementia, Stephen doesn’t really remember the confession in the book.

But in the film, the character tapes it on a recorder. Meanwhile, Bogdan acted out of vengeance in the book, exacting revenge on Gianni and Tony for having his best friend, Kazimir, killed. Kazimir is the taxi driver who was also a witness to a shoot-out connected to their drug operation. Bodgan murdered Gianni and framed a faulty CCTV camera to lure Tony out for an opening.

Yet, in the Netflix movie, Bogdan admits to having accidentally killed Tony during a kerfuffle when he tried to get back his passport to visit his sick mother in Poland.