‘Maigret’ is Back on PBS MASTERPIECE Mystery!
A newer, younger Maigret with the same old heart of gold
Georges Simenon’s latest novel adaptation has found a new home on PBS MASTERPIECE Mystery with Patrick Harbinson’s reimagining of Maigret. Starring Benjamin Wainwright as the titular character Jules Maigret, Stefanie Martini as Madame Louise Maigret, Shaniqua Okwok (Janvier), Kerrie Hayes (Lucas), Blake Harrison (Torrence), Reda Elazouar (Lapointe), Robert Kazinsky (Cavre), and Nathalie Armin (Kernavel).
Maigret follows a mid-30 something man in Paris who has just been appointed Chief Inspector at La Crim, a police unit that deals in major crimes. However, due to Maigret’s background, there is a lot of friction between him and Prosecutor Kernavel as he balks at the traditional methods of the justice system in order to solve crimes—using his unconventional methods, personal background, and ability to empathize and humanize criminals to bring justice.
A Maigret Reimagined
Throughout the 6 episodes, Maigret faces a string of crimes—some overlapping, some pulling him in opposite directions—that trigger trauma from his past that lay dormant for 20 years. As he gives his all to serve the victims, he struggles with the memories that threaten to undo him. In these 6 hours, the audience will also experience the questioning, the lingering turmoil, and the unwavering hope that lives inside of Maigret. While his hope is something he holds on to fiercely, outside forces challenge his intelligence and street savvy, causing people amongst his own team to distrust his decisions. His “go-to” approach is to appease everyone, put the cases first, but to what extent? Maigret must ask himself: how much [of yourself] can you give away before you have nothing left?
But what makes this version more of a reimagining than an adaptation? In previous adaptations, Maigret is in his 50s and marred by life, cynicism, and experience. While his backstory and empathy in the books is still present in this version, making Maigret 20 years younger connects a new audience to the story—those who see their own questioning, insecurities, and hope within a troubled man who simply wants to believe in the good of the world, despite all its pain. Additionally, the look and ages of Maigret’s team, known as ‘Les Maigrets’ have changed dramatically. Patrick wanted to stay true to the heart of the story while having performers, and thus characters, who represent contemporary Paris of today.
Les Maigrets
‘Les Maigrets’—Lucas, Torrence, Janvier, Lapointe, and Cavre—make up the team that Maigret leads in the department. Their ages vary and they have different social and ethnic backgrounds that plays to their strengths in solving cases. Their diversity, along with their street smarts, allows them to go into places where people otherwise would not cooperate with authorities. This makes them a formidable team and despite red-taped protestations from the higher ups, they yield results. During my sit down with Patrick he explained how he arrived at these characters, at this moment, and at this time in television.
Maigret airs Sunday, October 5, at 9/8c on MASTERPIECE Mystery on PBS. A weekly release will follow and will be available to stream via PBS and PBS MASTERPIECE on Amazon Prime Video.
© Kivonshe | So There’s That Podcast
Original editorial commentary on film and television. All rights reserved. Reproduction or redistribution without attribution is not permitted.