The Big Picture

• The Spiderwick Chronicles TV series follows the Grace family as they discover magic in their ancestral home in Michigan.
• The series boasts a star-studded cast including Christian Slater and Joy Bryant.
• Season 1 of The Spiderwick Chronicles will consist of eight episodes and will be available for free streaming on The Roku Channel starting April 19, 2024.

The Roku Channel has just released the official trailer for the fantasy series The Spiderwick Chronicles, which is based on the children’s book series of the same name written by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi. The show follows the Grace family as they move from Brooklyn into their ancestral home in Henson, Michigan, The Spiderwick Estate.

The story follows Helen Grace, played by Joy Bryant (About Last Night), along with her 15-year-old twin boys Jared (Lyon Daniels) and Simon (Noah Cottrell) and their sister, Mallory, portrayed by Mychala Lee, as they move from New York to Michigan to settle in their ancestral home. Christian Slater (Heathers) takes on the role of the antagonist Mulgarath, along with Dylan Bruce (Orphan Black) and Mellany Barros (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) featuring as supporting cast.

The trailer shows how Jared discovers a boggart and realizes that his new house is full of magical secrets. According to the show’s official synopsis — “the only one to believe Jared is his great-aunt Lucinda, who implores him to find the pages of her father’s field guide to magical creatures and protect them from the murderous Ogre Mulgarath.” So, guided by their great aunt and her father Arthur Spiderwick’s work, the twins begin to explore their new surroundings and the dangers that lurk within.

‘The Spiderwick Chronicles’ TV Show Was Long in The Making

The Spiderwick Chronicles novels are #1 New York Times bestsellers with 20 million copies sold and have been translated in over 30 countries. Building on this popularity, the novel was previously adapted into a movie released in 2008, starring The Good Doctor actor Freddie Highmore. Now, while this TV show has been in the making since 2021, the journey hasn’t been easy. The show originally started as a Disney+ project before being shelved. Ultimately, The Roku Channel picked it up in October 2023 with Paramount Television Studios and 20th Television.

Brian Tannenbaum, Head of Originals at Roku Media, has expressed his excitement for the show in the following words:

“It is an honor to bring The Spiderwick Chronicles, a spectacular adventure-filled story led by the incredible Christian Slater and Joy Bryant, exclusively to The Roku Channel. We cannot wait to introduce this exquisitely crafted series, imagined by a world-class creative team, to millions of streamers."

While the 2008 movie mostly covered the events of the first book, it’s unclear whether the show will do the same with its first season. Since there are 8 books in the series, there is a possibility that showrunner Aron Eli Coleite might adopt one book per season. For now, though, there is no official confirmation about his long-term plans. However, according to Nicole Clemens, President of Paramount TV Studios and Paramount+ Original Scripted Series, fans can expect the show to feature “all the enchantment that made the books so beloved.”

The Spiderwick Chronicles Season 1 will have 8 episodes, and it will be available to stream on The Roku Channel for free, starting April 19, 2024. Check out the official trailer below:

Watch on Roku