‘Haunting Adeline’ Movie: What We Know About the Dark Romance Adaptation
One of TikTok’s favorite dark — by dark, we mean seriously dark — romances is getting a movie adaptation. In July 2026, author H.D. Carlton announced that she was bringing Haunting Adeline, the first installment in her Cat & Mouse duet, to life onscreen.
The novel, which contains graphic violence and dubious/non-consent, follows author Adeline Riley as she inherits a gothic manor and discovers that she has a stalker. When he isn’t obsessing over Adeline, Zade is a vigilante who targets human-traffickers.
Readers have been curious about who’s playing Adeline and Zade for months, not to mention how exactly such a graphic story would translate to the screen. Keep reading for all the latest updates on the Haunting Adeline adaptation, including who’s in the cast, where you’ll be able to watch it, and more.
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Who is in the Haunting Adeline cast?
Though no actors have been announced yet, Carlton has been keeping fans in the loop on her website as well as social media. She’s confirmed that the production has found its Adeline and Zade, as well as supporting characters Daya and Jay. In August, Carlton announced that open auditions were being held for Sibby.
The author took to Instagram on October 11 to share a game: “Y’all begged and begged to know who’s playing Addie, so we’ve given you a way to figure it out. written in five Haunting Adeline books is a clue to figuring out who she is, hidden in a barnes & noble somewhere in Los Angeles, and signed by Adeline Reilly herself. these are the VERY first books signed by her, so like… extra special.”
When she revealed that the adaptation was in development, Carlton assured fans that the team would “scour the earth” for the perfect Zade. “Whoever we do end up casting, he will be as close to my vision of Zade as possible, who I intended him to be, what I wrote him as, what I imagined him as,” she said.
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Who is making the Haunting Adeline movie?
Carlton is working with a co-executive producer named Courtney. She didn’t reveal Courtney’s last name in her announcement video, but fans think that Carlton’s co-director is Courtney Solomon, known for 2000’s Dungeons & Dragons, The Strangers movies, and the first two After movies.
Carlton explained that he was the one to convince her to change her mind about a Haunting Adeline adaptation. “In my defense, I never thought that I would meet someone from Hollywood that is basically the male version of myself and just as insane as me. But I did, so with that said, my co-executive producer, Courtney, and I are super close.”
She continued, “I am 1,000% involved in this. At this point, I’m more like a co-director with him and he’s my business partner. He is just as invested as I am in this adaptation and keeping it as close to humanly possible to source material. So I want to stress to you all, my loves, that I am so involved in this. I have a say in everything. I mean, the script, the casting, the music, the set design, anything and everything that goes into this film, I have a say in.”
She stressed in the video that the movie would be accurate as possible to the source material. “As for why it’s a movie and not a TV show, as much as we both would love for it to be a TV show, there is not at this current time a streaming service or a network that exists that will platform the TV show without sticking their fingers in it and trying to tame things down, cut things out, and chop it up into pieces of what they think it should look like and what they want it to be,” she explained.
Though it’ll contain “everything you love about Haunting Adeline,” Carlton confirmed that some sacrifices have to be made when condensing a 600-page book into a two and a half-hour movie. “Things have to be changed a little bit, but nothing that is substantial to the book or anything to make it so different,” she said. “And not everything translates differently from book to film. But I can assure you that my own words are being used in the movie. The scenes are going to be what’s in Haunting Adeline. You’re going to see the book. I promise you that.”
Last but not least, the author clarified that the movie won’t shy away from explicit scenes. They added in a written caption on the post, “We are not watering this movie down and it will absolutely push boundaries as far as the spice (while still leaving enough to the imagination) BUT that doesn’t mean sensitive scenes and topics won’t be handled responsibility, tastefully, and artfully. We are approaching those aspects with great care.”
What is Haunting Adeline’s release date?
Though Carlton has teased that casting news is imminent in October 2026, Haunting Adeline does not yet have a release date. Further, there’s no confirmation where exactly you’ll be able to watch the adaptation. But you can return to this page regularly for updates — we’ll let you know as soon as we do!
Haunting Adeline, TBA
