Netflix’s 3-Part Detective Series Makes Building A Franchise Look Easy

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As Tony Hayers observed back in the 1990s, there’s a glut of fictional detectives, and the number has only grown with the popularity of streaming services like Netflix. The classic mystery format is simple to copy, whether it’s for a movie or a TV series. People clearly enjoy watching and trying to solve crimes, so creating these shows often boils down to finding a good setting, hiring a capable actor, and essentially playing a real-life version of the board game Cluedo.

Detective stories are consistently popular, which is why it’s easy for a single detective movie or TV show to become a long-running series. We’ve seen this with numerous adaptations of Agatha Christie, five different versions of Sherlock Holmes in under twenty years, and shows like Death in Paradise which has lasted fifteen seasons and even created spin-offs – the appetite for these kinds of mysteries seems limitless.

The biggest challenge for detective series is staying original. How do you keep a long-running franchise interesting without repeating the same old stories and clichés? It’s incredibly hard to bring a detective back for new cases while still feeling fresh, but a recent three-part series on Netflix seems to have cracked the code.

The Knives Out Franchise Turns Murder Mystery Weaknesses Into Strengths

What really defines a murder mystery isn’t who is killed or how the mystery unfolds, but rather the way those events are investigated. You can change almost anything else about the story – the detective, their workplace, the suspects, the killer’s personality, the setting, even the overall mood – and the core mystery will still work. These elements are largely interchangeable.

As a big mystery fan, I’ve noticed something about detective series. They often fall into a rut. It’s easy for them to become predictable, and while some people actually like that comfort – look at how popular “cozy crime” is! – critics usually aren’t so forgiving when the detective just seems to be going through the motions instead of actually solving a compelling case.

Rian Johnson’s Knives Out stands out because it cleverly uses the flexibility of the mystery genre. Each Knives Out film – Knives Out, Glass Onion, and Wake Up Dead Man – essentially tells a completely new story. In fact, Johnson initially preferred that the sequel not be directly connected to the Knives Out name, but Netflix decided to brand it as ‘A Knives Out Mystery’.

As a huge cinema fan, what really strikes me about the Knives Out films is how distinct each location is. You’ve got this classic, old-money mansion, a super sleek private island, and then a genuinely creepy village church – they all feel like they exist in completely different universes. Honestly, each one of those settings could easily support its own entire detective series – think a Boston-based mystery, a Greek island thriller, or a cozy mystery in a little countryside town. But Knives Out somehow manages to tie them all together, which gives it a freedom and range that most detective franchises just don’t have.

As a mystery fan, one of the things I really loved about Knives Out is how it gets to bring in a completely new cast of big names for each movie. Seriously, the ensemble feels like the guest list for the Oscars! These are actors who probably wouldn’t sign on for a whole series of detective films or a TV show, which means each movie has this amazing, fresh energy. Knives Out really plays with that star power, using it to surprise you and keep you guessing – it’s a really clever approach.

Despite Daniel Craig consistently playing detective Benoit Blanc, the character doesn’t follow a traditional, evolving storyline throughout the movies. This actually gives Craig the freedom to approach the role with fresh energy each time, adding subtle details and complexities without being tied to previous performances. Rian Johnson initially even thought about giving Blanc a different accent in every film! Because of this approach, Blanc remains a consistently engaging character, never becoming repetitive or predictable across the series.

Knives Out Is Becoming Less About The Mysteries

Most murder mystery series, whether short or long-running, center the story around solving the murder. Rian Johnson’s first Knives Out film followed this pattern in 2019, but the sequels moved away from it. In Glass Onion and especially Wake Up Dead Man, figuring out who committed the murder became less crucial than revealing the motivations and secrets of the characters themselves.

As a big fan of mysteries, I thought Glass Onion was brilliant in how it took apart the whole celebrity culture surrounding Miles Bron’s party, especially with Janelle Monáe playing two roles and Edward Norton’s incredibly over-the-top portrayal of Bron. But what really struck me was the ending. When Benoit Blanc calls the solution to the mystery ‘just dumb,’ it’s a perfect way of showing that Rian Johnson isn’t interested in just giving us another ‘who did it.’ It feels like he’s telling us that Blanc’s adventures won’t be simple case-after-case murder investigations, and I’m excited to see where he takes the character next!

The mystery in Wake Up Dead Man is solved in a subtle and unexpected way, defying typical thriller tropes. Instead of a dramatic reveal, Benoit Blanc delivers his explanation from the church pulpit, then the scene calmly concludes. Ultimately, the film’s ending focuses not on who committed the crime, but on eliminating a harmful presence from a small community.

While many detective series have lasted for years, Knives Out has the potential to be unique. If the films continue as they have, it could be the first franchise of its kind to avoid becoming stale or predictable.

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2026-02-24 23:09