Gillian Anderson Will Co-Produce TV Adaptation of The Coast Road by Alan Murrin — and Reveals Her Dream Casting

Gillian Anderson is bringing a new book to life onscreen.

The actress and author, 56, spoke with Bustle as part of their “One Nightstand” series, in a video interview published on Oct. 28, in which celebrity guests share books that have impacted them. Anderson called out Alan Murrin’s novel The Coast Road, and shared that she will co-produce the upcoming TV adaption.

“It’s a fabulous book, a debut novel — it just came out last year,” Anderson said, adding that the novel has “really, really good women’s voices written by a man.”

The Coast Road centers Collette Crowley, a writer who left her family, and her small town of County Donegal to pursue a relationship with a married man in the 1990s. When Collette returns home to reconnect with her old life, she sees it will be harder than she thought, which leads to her forming a friendship with her neighbor, Izzy.

Anderson will develop the series with her production company, Fiddlehead Productions, and Element Pictures, the actress told Bustle. Anderson said that she often reads books to search for something to adapt, and that many parts of the process are appealing to her.

“I love casting things too, and opportunities for good actors and, particularly, a diverse range of actors and nationalities,” the actress said. “I like finding things that can potentially expand people’s understanding.”

Anderson also revealed her dream casting for the Coast Road adaptation in the interview.

“I would love Jessie Buckley, potentially for [the character] Dolores,” Anderson said, adding, “For Izzy, Elisabeth Moss … I’ve wanted to work with her for a long time.”

In addition to The Coast Road, Anderson shared three other favorite books, including the novel Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid, the picture book In the Forest by Marie Hall Ets and the nonfiction book Decolonising My Body by Afua Hirsch.

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Anderson, whose new book Want: Sexual Fantasies by Anonymous came out earlier this year, told Bustle that she hasn’t always been a big reader herself, and that she reads sporadically, often while she’s on vacation. 

“I go through stages. It’s kind of a gift that I give myself, and I don’t give myself many gifts,” Anderson said, noting that her daughter Piper’s love of books has inspired some of her own literary inclinations.

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“My daughter, who just turned 30 … she suddenly had this epiphany that the world of books was her oyster, and I realized that I never had that,” Anderson said. “I’ve still been slightly waiting for that moment, and I keep thinking it’s when I’m in the old people’s home, is when I’m going to make sure that I give myself that moment … that’s my dream.”