‘Little House,’ ‘The Odyssey’ and More: The Best Historical Fiction Books Hitting Screens in 2026
From Walnut Grove to ancient Greece, these beloved books are lighting up screens in 2026
Key Takeaways
- Netflix is rebooting ‘Little House on the Prairie' with a new cast.
- Christopher Nolan's ‘The Odyssey’ starring Matt Damon opens July 17, 2026.
- A new ‘Sense and Sensibility’ adaptation starring Daisy Edgar-Jones is coming.
One of the best parts about reading historical fiction is this idea of being transported to a time in the past and getting to imagine what it was like. You get to travel alongside these characters through these events, and it’s truly amazing to see. What’s also great? Getting to see their journeys unfold on screen as well, and thankfully many beloved historical fiction books are being turned into movies and TV shows coming out soon. We share the best ones below.
Historical fiction books being turned into movies and TV shows
From Greek mythology to classic Westerns, here are the best historical fiction books being turned into movies and TV shows in 2026.
‘Little House on the Prairie’
More than 40 years after the original show’s debut, Netflix is rebooting Little House on the Prairie. The new show will stay true to Laura Ingalls Wilder’s bestselling book series, following the Ingalls family through their heartwarming 1870s adventures in Walnut Grove, Minnesota. In the new show, Alice Halsey will play Laura Ingalls, Luke Bracey will play Charles Ingalls, Crosby Fitzgerald will play Caroline Ingalls and Skywalker Hughes will play Mary Ingalls.
“I am absolutely thrilled with the brilliant cast we have assembled,” showrunner and executive producer Rebecca Sonnenshine told Tudum earlier this year. “Each one of them brings something special to the Little House universe and will help make this story come alive for a whole new generation.”
“I fell deeply in love with these books when I was 5 years old,” she continued. “They inspired me to become a writer and a filmmaker, and I am honored and thrilled to be adapting these stories for a new audience.”
Little House on the Prairie premieres on Netflix on Friday, July 9, 2026.
‘The Odyssey’
Christopher Nolan’s rendition of Homer’s The Odyssey is one of the most anticipated movies of the year. In it, Odysseus, king of Ithaca (Matt Damon) embarks on a treacherous journey home after the Trojan war. The film stars Zendaya, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron and more, and tickets for the film recently broke the AMC Theaters app for a couple of minutes.
“He [Damon] was an incredible leader for us. He was just there out on the boats, up the mountains, in the caves, in beating sunshine, in sideways rain and wind, so many different places that we went to,” Nolan said at CinemaCon in April of this year. “We went all over the world to make this film because this is The Odyssey. You’ll be pleased to hear how difficult it was for us because it’s meant to be difficult. That’s the nature of the story.”
“At the core of this story, this is a story about family,” he added. “This is a story about a father’s desperate journey to return home.”
The Odyssey premieres in theaters on Friday, July 17, 2026.
‘Sense And Sensibility’
Jane Austen fans, it’s time to celebrate, because we’re getting another Sense and Sensibility adaptation. In it, Elinor Dashwood (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Marianne Dashwood (Bodhi Rae Breathnach) deal with money and family problems in 18th-century Georgian England.
Sense and Sensibility hits theaters on Friday, October 16, 2026.
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