LOS ANGELES — In a major power move for its prestige drama slate, Netflix has officially handed a straight-to-series order to a limited series adaptation of Jonathan Franzen’s National Book Award-winning novel, The Corrections.
The project, which has been shopped to major streamers since late 2024, will star three-time Academy Award winner Meryl Streep in the central role of Enid Lambert. Streep will also serve as an executive producer on the series, which marks her latest venture into prestige television following her acclaimed turns in Big Little Lies and Only Murders in the Building.
A Heavyweight Creative Team
Netflix has assembled an elite creative roster to bring Franzen’s “Great American Novel” to the screen:
- Writer/Executive Producer: Jonathan Franzen himself is adapting the 2001 novel for the screen, ensuring the series remains faithful to the complex, dark humor of the source material.
- Director/Executive Producer: Cord Jefferson, fresh off his Oscar win for American Fiction, is set to direct all episodes of the limited series.
- Studio: The project is being produced by Paramount Television Studios (following its transition from CBS Studios).
The Lambert Family Saga
Described by Netflix as a “sharply comic portrait of a Midwestern family,” the series follows the Lambert clan as they unravel under the weight of their own “delusional ambitions.”
- The Matriarch: Enid Lambert (Streep) is a woman obsessed with the idea of a “perfect” final family Christmas at the family home in St. Jude, even as her husband, Alfred, descends into the fog of Parkinson’s and dementia.
- The Children: The three adult siblings—Gary, Chip, and Denise—desperately resist their mother’s summons, each struggling with professional failures, clinical depression, and scandalous personal lives that they’ve kept hidden from their parents.
A Long Road to the Screen
The announcement ends a nearly 25-year struggle to adapt the novel. Previous attempts included:
- 2002: A planned film adaptation by Scott Rudin and director Stephen Daldry that never moved past development.
- 2011: An HBO pilot directed by Noah Baumbach starring Chris Cooper, Dianne Wiest, and Ewan McGregor. Despite the star power, the network famously passed on the project in 2012, citing the difficulty of condensing the sprawling narrative.
”The Corrections is a masterpiece of modern literature because it is so human and so messy,” a Netflix spokesperson said. “With Meryl Streep at the center and Cord Jefferson’s visionary direction, we are finally going to see the Lamberts in all their tragic, hilarious glory.”
What’s Next for Streep
The news comes as Streep prepares for a massive 2026. In addition to The Corrections, she is slated to reprise her iconic role as Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada 2, which hits theaters on May 1, 2026.
While Netflix has not yet set a premiere date for The Corrections, production is expected to begin in late 2026, with a likely release window of fall 2027. Further casting for the roles of Alfred, Gary, Chip, and Denise is currently underway.
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