❚We may earn commission from links on this page. Our editorial is always independent (learn more).
Dope Thief creator explains major change he made from novel – but author is happy with it
"I've adapted a lot of authors, and I'm usually pretty careful about making sure they're on board with everything, and he seemed to be on board with everything."
New Apple TV+ show Dope Thief is based on the novel of the same name by Dennis Tafoya, and stars Brian Tyree Henry and Wagner Moura as two long-time friends posing as DEA agents in Philadelphia.
Ad
The duo do this in order to rob small-time drug dealers, but when they rob an unknown house in the countryside they unwittingly reveal and unravel the biggest hidden narcotics corridor on the Eastern Seaboard - putting them in a life-and-death situation.
The show has been created by Peter Craig (Gladiator II, The Batman), who spoke exclusively with RadioTimes.com, and revealed how similar fans of the book can expect the story to be when they watch it on screen.
Craig said: "I think they can find it to be pretty different, particularly in the second half of the book.
"I think they're going to find that it leaves the shore entirely, but I think people who read the book will find it interesting because they'll find that a lot of the beginning of the book is absorbed into it, and it's pretty true to it for that section."
Brian Tyree Henry in Dope Thief. Apple TV+
He continued: "And then it takes all of that spirit and extends the crisis of the first half all the way and changes it to the end.
"Whereas in the book, it's resolved halfway through, and then there's a second half that's a reflection and it's kind of a second story that happens. The second story isn't there in this one.
"It's just the first story all the way through with a bunch of changes in the back half. Dennis tells me he's happy with that, so I think we're OK.
"I've adapted a lot of authors, and I'm usually pretty careful about making sure they're on board with everything, and he seemed to be on board with everything."
Alongside Henry and Moura, the series also stars Marin Ireland, Kate Mulgrew, Nesta Cooper, Amir Arison and Ving Rhames, and it will be made up of eight episodes.
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
