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Prime Video dropped all eight episodes of Scarpetta on Wednesday, and Alexandria residents have a compelling reason to tune in: Our city is the beating heart of the show.
The series stars Nicole Kidman as forensic pathologist Dr. Kay Scarpetta and unfolds across two timelines. In the past-set storyline, according to Variety's review, it's 1998, and the city of Alexandria is being terrorized by a serial killer, with a fourth body just discovered and a young Kay Scarpetta newly installed as chief medical examiner.
Here's the kicker for fans of Patricia Cornwell's original novels: This is a deliberate departure from the books. The Hollywood Reporter notes that Scarpetta is back in Virginia — Alexandria in the series, Richmond in the books. Showrunner Liz Sarnoff made the call to swap Richmond for Alexandria when adapting the story for television.
The character herself has deep Virginia roots. Kay Scarpetta was inspired by Dr. Marcella Fierro, the real-life chief medical examiner of Virginia, whom Cornwell first met in 1984 while researching her debut novel. "I would not be where I am today in my life were it not for Dr. Fierro," Cornwell has said. Fierro worked on some of Virginia's most notorious cases, including the Richmond Southside Strangler killings — the same case, fictionalized, that launched the Scarpetta book series.
The present-day storyline is equally rooted in the Commonwealth. According to Prime Video's official series order announcement, the show follows Kay Scarpetta as she returns to Virginia and resumes her former position, navigating complex relationships — including with her sister Dorothy — while confronting long-held grudges and secrets.
What the show is about: Per Prime Video, Scarpetta is "an unrelenting medical examiner determined to serve as the voice of the victims, unmask a serial killer, and prove that her career-making case from 28 years prior isn't also her undoing." The series "delves beyond the crime scene to explore the psychological complexities of both perpetrators and investigators." Alongside Kidman, the cast features Academy Award winner Jamie Lee Curtis as Kay's sister Dorothy, Emmy winner Bobby Cannavale as detective Pete Marino, Emmy nominee Simon Baker as FBI profiler Benton Wesley and Academy Award winner Ariana DeBose as tech prodigy Lucy Farinelli Watson.
Don't expect to recognize any streets, though. Despite Alexandria's prominent role in the story, Primetimer reports that the majority of scenes were filmed in Nashville, Tennessee — including the neighborhoods of Germantown, Donelson, Berry Hill and Spring Hill, all used to stand in for Virginia locales. According to Wikipedia, filming was originally scheduled to begin in September 2024 before being pushed to October, with production wrapping in March 2025. Kidman, who lives in Nashville, was reportedly a factor in anchoring the production there.
Early reception is mixed. The series currently holds a 72% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 39 critic reviews, while Metacritic assigns it a 54 out of 100 — "mixed or average" — based on 22 critics. Critics largely praise the dual-timeline structure and Rosy McEwen's performance as the younger, Alexandria-era Scarpetta, though some find the eight-episode season overstuffed with plot.
It has been a long road to the screen. As Cornwell told the Virginia Pilot, "Scarpetta has been in options, literally, since 1989," with Demi Moore and later Angelina Jolie each attached at various points. Now, with Prime Video behind it — and a second season already on order — Kay Scarpetta has finally arrived. And the show has planted her flag in Alexandria.
Scarpetta is streaming now on Prime Video. All eight episodes are available.
