A Thrilling (Yet Forgettable) Harlan Coben Crime Drama

Image: Netflix

Netflix’s 14-book deal with beloved crime author Harlan Coben has yet another adaptation in the form of Run Away. Is it another hit? Here’s our review.

When there’s an adaptation of a Harlan Coben novel being made, you better know that the casting team will do anything possible to cast James Nesbitt. The Northern Irish actor has so far starred in two adaptations, playing DS Michael Broome in Stay Close (2021) and Calligan in Missing You (2025).

In Run Away, the first major Netflix release of 2026, Nesbitt plays perhaps his most complex Coben character yet: a father, Simon Green, who’ll do anything to find his missing daughter Paige (Ellie de Lange). He spends the entire series like a coiled spring, often boiling over into explosive anger, as he ventures deeper into the crime and cultish underworld that has swept up his daughter. It’s twisty, brutal, and will absolutely leave you desperate to tune into the next episode through its well crafted cliffhangers — a trope that Coben series have become known for, from hidden identities, to complex family dramas, to big clues.

Run Away has a little of everything, but at its core it’s a family-focused story, making it wholly and inherently emotional from the opening scene. The main family is Simon (James Nesbitt), his wife Ingrid (Minnie Driver), and their three children Paige (Ellie de Lange), Anya (Ellie Henry), and Sam (Adrian Greensmith).

Run Away Series January

At the start, teenager Paige Greene is missing. Having run away from home, she got caught up in an underworld rife with drugs and cultish groups. This leads her father Simon on a chase to find her. He follows breadcrumbs and ventures into some of the most dangerous areas in his town on his search, confronting numerous unhinged individuals. His search is ardent and steadfast, and he won’t back down in any scenario. He’s not afraid to get his hands dirty.

Moreover, when the body of Aaron (Thomas Flynn), one of the last people Paige was seen with, is found butchered, Simon’s investigation becomes significantly more complicated.

Nesbitt once more shows why he’s a top tier protagonist; he brings an impressive range. Viewers will feel his depiction of fatherly love and ferocious rage. I was particularly impressed with the surrounding cast, too. The series does an excellent job of developing characters outside of Nesbitt’s Simon. The standouts were flirty police detectives Isaac (Alfred Enoch) and Ruby (Amy Gledhill). I also enjoyed Dee Dee (Maeve Courtier-Lilley) and Ash (Jon Pointing), a duo tasked with killing a specific group of people (for reasons we won’t delve into for spoiler reasons). Their chemistry is electric to watch.

Run Away Harlan Coben First Look

Ruth Jones (Gavin & Stacy, Stella) brings a welcome charisma and charm to the role of Private Investigator Elena Ravenscroft, while Lucian Msamati (Hostage, Gangs of London) delivers another grounded and gritty performance.

The show’s plot is relentless, incredibly dense and fast-paced, leaving the viewer with little time to reflect on key moments. This is only accelerated by each episode concluding with a hook. There’s little to no filler. This is a limited series after all, and they cram as much content into it as possible. It could have benefited from a little extra breathing space. The narrative is a little incoherent in the middle, but it manages to find its footing before becoming messy.

In true Harlan Coben style, Run Away will keep you guessing; and just when you think you’ve figured something out, it’ll throw twice as many curveballs at you. The series holds its mysteries very well; we’ll forgive a few plot conveniences. It’ll lead you in unexpected directions and throw in a dozen twists. It does stick the ending, but it won’t blow you away.

Run Away is a solid and completely entertaining series. You’ll have a lot of fun and thrills — and you’ll definitely get that adrenaline rush — but after the credits roll, you’ll almost certainly move on quickly and forget about it as it fades into the ever-growing library of Harlan Coben adaptations, and that’s totally fine. It sits somewhere in the upper middle of the pile of Coben adaptations on Netflix.

Even after 10 adaptations, we’re still seated for all the other Harlan Coben adaptations Netflix is making. If that isn’t testament to how entertaining they are, I don’t know what is.

MVP of Run Away

Run Away First Look Netflix

James Nesbitt – It’s hard not to give James Nesbitt the MVP for his performance throughout all eight episodes of Run Away. He gives a performance of elite emotional range. That said, I also want to give an honorary mention to Ruth Jones and Maeve Courtier-Lilley for owning every scene they appeared in.