Netflix’s Pride And Prejudice Looks Promising, But Dakota Johnson’s Persuasion Leaves Me With One Massive Worry

Netflix’s spiciest take on the Regency Era isn’t over yet in the 2026 TV schedule with the second half of Bridgerton Season 4 still to arrive, but the streamer is already hyping a book-to-screen adaptation that will likely be a lot more accurate to the real-life time period. Yes, another take on Jane Austen’s beloved Pride and Prejudice is on the way via a Netflix subscription before the end of the year.

As a fan of the novel and most adaptations, I’m intrigued by the first look at the newest incarnations of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy, but Netflix's finished product of Dakota Johnson’s Persuasion from 2022 has me worried.

Netflix’s New Pride And Prejudice

First things first! Pride & Prejudice has been adapted plenty of times already, most famously with the 2005 film version starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen as well as the 1995 BBC miniseries that's so iconic that the Barbie movie referenced it. The new Netflix version is set to arrive before the end of 2026, and the first look shows some glimpses that really make this seem like a classic adaptation: Emma Corrin looking thoughtful as Elizabeth Bennet, Jack Lowden looking broody as Mr. Darcy, a dance at a ball, and a letter. Take a look:

Pride and Prejudice | Official Teaser | Netflix - YouTube

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Even as a fan of the source material and the two most famous adaptations, I can admit that I was one of many who first wondered if the world really needed another take on Pride & Prejudice when it was first announced last year. I was still going to watch, of course, but it was Netflix’s post on X (formerly known as Twitter) that has gotten me properly excited that the series will be among the 2026 Netflix movie and TV releases:

Netflix, you had me at “faithful adaptation” when it comes to the miniseries, set to arrive this fall! The Wuthering Heights film with Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi, which came out earlier this month as a 2026 movie release, certainly took major liberties with the source material penned by Emily Brontë. As a much bigger fan of Austen’s most beloved novel than I am of Brontë’s book, I’ve just been nervous that the new Pride and Prejudice would veer wildly from the source material.

I’m happy to wait and see how the new cast delivers in their iconic roles, and I’d say that Jack Lowden already delivers the necessary haughtiness to bring Mr. Darcy to life, and I’ll be interested in a full trailer to show off more of Emma Corrin’s take on Lizzie. All of that said, I was burned so badly with the 2022 Netflix adaptation of Jane Austen’s Persuasion that I'm probably going to be wary until the miniseries arrives.

The Situation With Netflix’s Persuasion

Before I go off on how the 2022 film made massive changes from Jane Austen’s book to screen with Dakota Johnson as leading lady, I can acknowledge that this version of Persuasion could be a very fun romp to viewers who hadn’t read the novel that inspired it. As somebody who ranks Persuasion as my #2 Austen novel (behind Pride and Prejudice) and Captain Wentworth as my #2 Austen leading man (behind Mr. Darcy), however, I’m still scarred by what the Netflix movie did to Anne Elliot in the adaptation.

While the plot of the movie did more or less correspond to the most important beats from the book, Dakota Johnson’s Anne and Cosmo Jarvis’ Captain Wentworth didn’t share much in common with the book characters other than their names. In fact, this version of Anne Elliot felt like the movie really wanted to tell a story with Lizzie Bennet without just adapting Pride and Prejudice again, and Lizzie Bennet does not fit in Persuasion. (Nor would it have been a particularly good adaptation of Lizzie Bennet.)

Am I being a bit dramatic here with having a grudge against a movie from 2022? Probably, but Persuasion as an anachronistic rom com rubbed me the wrong way when the movie first released, and the divergence from the source material is what makes me wary of Netflix’s next Jane Austen adaptation. I’m more optimistic after the first look, however, and I certainly know that I’ll be watching the Pride and Prejudice miniseries when it comes out this fall. That is, unless a trailer comes out to reveal that I’d be in for Persuasion 2.0!