Will Trent Season 4 is set to premiere on January 6, 2026. And one of the biggest questions people usually ask about the show is… why is the name familiar? Is the show based on anything? And the answer to that question is actually a pretty straightforward yes, to a lot of people’s surprise.
Sure, Will Trent might not be as famous as some other fictional characters whose stories have been adapted for the small screen, like Jack Reacher or even Enola Holmes, but he’s still pretty well known. And yes, you have seen that name before in a book.
What is Will Trent Based On?
The show is based on the best-selling book series of the same name by American author Karin Slaughter. Slaughter has written a total of 24 novels, which have gone on to sell over 40 million copies worldwide and have been published in 120 countries. So, again, it’s not like Will Trent is an unknown. He might just not be as well-known to people who don’t read detective thrillers.
In the show, the titular character is played by Puerto Rican actor Ramón Rodríguez. The show also stars Sonja Sohn as Amanda Wagner, Iantha Richardson as Faith Mitchell, and Jake McLaughlin as Michael Ormewood. It focuses on the aforementioned Special Agent, who was abandoned at birth and spent his life in Atlanta’s foster care system. Now, he uses his unique point of view to pursue justice. And he’s good at it—he has the highest clearance rate in the Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI).
There are currently 12 books in the Will Trent series. The latest, This Is Why We Lied, was released on August 20, 2024. The Pilot of the show was inspired by Fractured, the second book in the series.
Now you know, as you watch the show, that if you want to know more, you can always turn to the books! Of course, there’s no guarantee the series will have enough time to cover the same ground, but there is a blueprint. There is a plan. Whatever happens, that’s at least a little comforting.
I have read the entire Will Trent books, love them. But the show is 180 degrees different. So it may take some adjusting to the books if you have not read them but have watched the show.