Nick Kolakowski's "Where the Bones Lie"

Nick Kolakowski is the author of several crime novels, including Where the Bones Lie and Payback is Forever. His work has been nominated for the Anthony and Derringer awards, and his short story “Scorpions” appeared in The Best Mystery and Suspense 2024. His short fiction has appeared in numerous anthologies and magazines, including Mystery Weekly, Shotgun Honey, Rock and a Hard Place Press, and more.

Here Kolakowski dreamcasts an adaptation of Where the Bones Lie:

When I sat down to write Where the Bones Lie, my mystery novel about a washed-up Hollywood fixer and a young hipster lady trying to solve a decades-old murder, I didn’t have actors in mind for a hypothetical movie or TV adaptation—which perhaps is ironic, considering how much of the book takes place amidst L.A.’s movie industry.

As time went on, though, I couldn’t help but consider a bit of “dreamcasting.” Natasha Lyonne, who I loved in Poker Face and Russian Doll, would make a perfect Madeline, the younger and more sarcastic of my amateur detective duo. Madeline is bitter about her past, a big fan of chain-smoking, and possesses an eccentric fashion sense—and Lyonne would nail all of that perfectly (her Russian Doll character is most of the way there, especially on the smoking front).

Casting for Dash, my burned-out fixer, is a lot tougher. Before he got into the sleuthing business, Dash spent years cleaning up the Hollywood studios’ biggest messes as quietly as possible. He’s haunted by many of the things he’s done, and he’s looking for some kind of redemption, even if he’s not quite sure what that looks like. If you’re adapting the book, it’s not the kind of role you fill with a young, smooth-skinned actor; you need someone with some real miles on their face. The more I think about it, the more I like someone like Walton Goggins, who proved so spectacular in crime fare like The Shield and Justified.

The cool thing about Goggins is that he’s masterful at playing someone who’s haunted and battle-scarred, but he’s also spectacularly funny when he needs to be. Dash is a witty protagonist, and much of the book is powered by his constant back-and-forth with Madeline as they hunt for clues and dodge death; Goggins can pull this off. Pair him with Lyonne? That would rock.

I don’t want to go too deeply into spoiler territory, but there’s another major character in the book, Manny, who’s something of a mentor to Dash. An early reader suggested that JK Simmons would be perfect here, as Manny (like Simmons) is funny and energetic, but also capable of turning quickly to real menace. If you’ve ever witnessed Simmons’ raging performance as the music instructor in Whiplash, you know he can be downright terrifying if the role calls for it.

For the rest of the characters, you could aim for interesting faces, as if you were casting an old noir movie. There are corrupt cops, decadent movie stars, shady PR types, and more—plenty of opportunities for any actors who want to go villainous. Once you get into California’s shady underbelly, things get scary quickly.

Visit Nick Kolakowski's website.

--Marshal Zeringue