Nicole Kidman faces backlash over graphic crime drama

Criticism was mainly directed due to the prestige cast and the scale of the production.

Kidman, known for roles in films including The hours and TV series Big little liesplays the older version of Scarpetta returned to her job as chief medical examiner decades after a traumatic case early in her career.

The series interweaves the murder investigation with the character’s personal life. In addition to the case involving a serial killer, the story explores Scarpetta’s complicated family relationships.

Curtis plays Dorothy, Scarpetta’s outspoken sister, while Cannavale co-star Pete Marino.

The story also follows Scarpetta’s niece Lucy, who is depicted as dealing with grief after the death of her wife by communicating with an artificial intelligence recreation of her partner.

The show’s creators said the series aims to stay true to Cornwell’s novels, which have sold millions of copies worldwide since the first book in the series. Postmortempublished in 1990.

Cornwell makes a cameo appearance in the first episode and has expressed his excitement about seeing the character finally brought to television.

However, commentators said that translating the novels’ forensic descriptions directly to the screen is proving controversial.

A television critic said the series highlights a recurring tension within the genre.

They said: “Details that feel clinical or investigative when you read them in a book can take on a very different tone when shown in explicit detail on screen.”

The critic added that the repeated visual focus on victims’ bodies may change the way audiences interpret the story.

They said: “When a camera repeatedly returns to close-ups of murdered women or lingers on the aftermath of violence, some viewers begin to feel that the line between storytelling and spectacle is blurring.

“What might be intended as a grim depiction of crime can end up feeling like suffering itself has become part of the visual drama.”