Although Karin Slaughter’s comments on ABC’sWill Trentseries weren’t lengthy, they were enough to hint at the show’s biggest change early on. AfterWill Trent’s season 3 finale, it is fair to say the successful ABC procedural has captured the best parts of author Karin Slaughter’s novel series of the same name without sticking scrupulously to their formula.
WhileWill Trentseason 4may be closer to the source novels than its predecessors, the show immediately made it clear that it was a loose adaptation with the casting of Ramon Rodriguez. The star doesn’t match the physical description of Trent found in Slaughter’s books, but he has perfectly embodied the character’s essence throughout the three seasons.
Karin Slaughter Warned Readers Will Trent Changed The Books Back In Season 1
Slaughter’s Comments Came Before The Show’s Ormewood Changes Became Clear
From the outset,Slaughter was clear that theWill Trentshow would change the books substantially, and that she thought this was a good thing for both the novels and the procedural series. In an interview withCrimeSpreemagazine before season 1 premiered, Slaughter said, “The books are the books and the show is the show.”
WhileWill Trent’s TV show kept the main character’s personality from the novels, the procedural fundamentally altered the role of Michael Ormewood.
She went on to commend the creators for the judicious changes they made, but savvy fans of the mystery author might have noticed a clue to season 1’s story in that comment. WhileWill Trent’s TV show kept the main character’s personalityfrom the novels, the procedural fundamentally altered the role of Michael Ormewood.
Yul Vazquez
Sheriff Caleb Roussard
A supporting character in the show, Ormewood, is a vile villain in the first Will Trent novel,Triptych. A serial rapist and murderer, the corrupt cop is killed at the end of the first book. Although Ormewood has his major character flaws in the show, he is far from the monster depicted in the novel.
Slaughter’s Warning Foreshadowed Will Trent Season 1’s Ormewood Twist
Ormewood Is A Monstrous Villain In The Source Novels
Instead, Ormewood gradually became the show’s comic relief and supporting star of the series as he slowly redeemed himself throughout seasons 1-3. By the timeWill Trentseason 3 revealed Ormewood’s brain tumour, his potential death was a tragedy rather than the welcome, cathartic relief it is in the novel, highlighting the contrast between the two versions of Ormewood.
Will Trentreturns with season 4 (consisting of 18 episodes) in early 2026.
Ormewood’s complete character transformation isn’t one that viewers could have guessed wholesale, and his unpredictable arc has been one of the joys of discovering the show’s new take on these familiar characters. However, Slaughter did hint at just how much the show would change him and the rest of the characters from their novel depictions beforeWill Trenteven began.
