What Is The Good Daughter About? The New Psychological Thriller To Add To Your Watch List

Trauma is a powerful force, affecting how people behave, interact and remember events years after the initial trigger. And it’s the force at the fore of Sky’s new series: The Good Daughter. Based on the bestselling 2017 thriller by (aptly-named) crime writer Karin Slaughter, the new psychological drama will be hitting our screens on 12 November. Here’s everything you need to know.

Meghann Fahy as Charlie in The Good Daughter. ™ © 2026 Peacock TV LLC. All Rights Reserved

What Is The Good Daughter About?

Twenty years ago, sisters Charlotte and Samantha Quinn were left devastated by a childhood attack on their home. It left their mother dead, their father destroyed by grief, and their family consumed by secrets. Back in the present day, the Quinn sisters are estranged and living very different lives. Both followed their father, Rusty Quinn (Brendan Gleeson), into legal practice. But while younger sister Charlie (Meghann Fahy) is still in their Southern town of Pikeville, working alongside Rusty on defence cases, Samantha (Rose Byrne) now works in New York. 

When Charlie witnesses a school shooting in her local community, the case triggers memories that she’d been desperately trying to suppress. As older sister Sam arrives back home, at the behest of their father, we learn that the Quinn sisters’ troubled past is just one part of a much bigger web of secrets. In a town where everyone knows everyone else’s business, loyalties are complicated and powerful people have plenty to hide. The Good Daughter makes it clear that the more you run from your past, the harder it catches up with you. For the Quinn sisters to move on with their lives, they must confront the dark secrets their family has worked so hard to bury.

As Sky says, this Southern Gothic tale ‘is not just a story of survival, but of enduring ties between a father and his daughters – and the complex bond between sisters.’ 

Watch the trailer below for a taste of the action. 

Who Adapted The Good Daughter?

Though most novelists hand over their books to screenwriters for adaptation, Karin Slaughter decided to take on the script herself in her first screen-writing stint. Speaking of her decision to serve as showrunner, she said: ‘I just loved the story. A lot of shocking things happen, but it’s really a love story between two sisters.’ Two of her novels, Piece of Her and Will Trent have previously been adapted for screen. She is also an executive producer, alongside Rose Byrne, Bruna Papandrea, Steve Hutensky and Casey Haver, and series director Steph Green. 

Meghann Fahy as Charlie & Brendan Gleeson as Rusty in The Good Daughter. ™ © 2026 Peacock TV LLC. All Rights Reserved

Who Stars?

The Good Daughter stars Meghann Fahy (best known for her role of Daphne in The White Lotus season 2) as Charlotte ‘Charlie’ Quinn and Bridesmaids’ Rose Byrne as Samantha ‘Sam’ Quinn. Speaking of the script with PEOPLE, Fahy said: ‘The show is really heavy but it’s so hopeful. Ultimately I think [what] we’re hoping to take away is your trauma really doesn’t define you if you don’t let it.’

Production worked with organisations such as Brady for the show’s depiction of gun violence, and RAINN for scenes involving sexual assault. To prepare for her role, Byrne met with a physical therapist who specialises in treating trauma victims.

The series also stars Brendan Gleeson as the girls’ father, Rusty Quinn, and Olivia Williams as their mother Harriet ‘Gamma’ Quinn. Find the full cast list below: 

• Rose Byrne (Bridesmaids, Ms America) as Samantha Quinn
• Meghann Fahy (The White Lotus, Sirens) as Charlotte Quinn
• Brendan Gleeson (The Banshees of Inisherin, In Bruges) as Rusty
• Harper Steele (Will & Harper, Saturday Night Live) as Lenore
• Olivia Williams (The Sixth Sense, An Education) as Harriett ‘Gamma’ Quinn
• Newcomer Drew Ann Cheek as Young Charlie
• Audrey Grace Marshall (The Flight Attendant, Esme My Love) as Young Sam
• Michael Dorman (For All Mankind, The Invisible Man) as Ben

The Good Daughter Release Date

The Good Daughter will be premiering on Thursday 12 November on Sky in the UK, and on Peacock in the US.

WATCH