Homeland star Claire Danes headlines Netflix‘s new mystery thriller series The Beast in Me, poised for release on November 13, 2025. Created by Gabe Rotter, the eight-part miniseries centers on Agatha “Aggie” Wiggs (Danes), a once prominent author struggling with writer’s block following the death of her son, Cooper (Leonard Gerome).
When an enigmatic new neighbor moves in next door, Aggie’s imagination runs wild as she begins digging into the neighbor’s sordid past and finds inspiration for her next novel. A classic cat-and-mouse thriller with Hitchcockian shades, The Beast in Me boasts a terrific international ensemble that viewers are sure to recognize. In addition to Aggie’s mysterious new neighbor, let’s meet the cast and the characters they play in The Beast in Me.
‘The Beast in Me’s Premise, Explained
With a premise conceived by Gabe Rotter (The X-Files), The Beast in Me is an eight-episode miniseries debuting on Netflix on November 13, 2025. The story follows Aggie Wiggs (Danes), a successful author who has fallen into a despondent spiral following the death of her young boy, Cooper. Unable to write following the unspeakable tragedy, Aggie secludes herself in her home and becomes a shell of her former self.
When a hotshot real estate agent named Nile Jarvis moves in next door, Aggie becomes fascinated. Upon realizing that Jarvis was the prime suspect in his wife’s disappearance, Aggie’s fascination turns into an obsession as she begins snooping around and adapting her notorious neighbor’s life into her new novel. For an emotionally devastated mother grappling with guilt, grief, loss, and remorse, the question becomes: how much is Aggie imagining Jarvis’s criminal behavior as a coping mechanism?
As showrunner Howard Gordon notes about the 2025 Netflix miniseries:
“It really is about all of our complicity. Whether it’s Monica Lewinsky or Amanda Knox or Nile Jarvis or whatever, sometimes we are quick to make assumptions. But when we are forced to look at it from another angle, do we have the humility and the compassion to listen and to revise the narrative“
Claire Danes as Aggie Wiggs
Veteran TV and movie actor Claire Danes (Homeland, Romeo + Juliet) stars as Agatha “Aggie” Wiggs in The Beast in Me. Aggie is an acclaimed author who cannot write anything of substance following the death of her son. However, that changes with the arrival of Nile Jarvis, a successful realtor who was suspected, but never arrested, of being involved with his wife’s disappearance. In attempting to prove Jarvis’s guilt or innocence, Aggie’s obsession feeds into her own feelings about her child’s demise.
Matthew Rhys as Nile Jarvis
Talented Welsh actor Matthew Rhys (The Americans, Perry Mason) plays Nile Jarvis, Aggie’s enigmatic neighbor who may or may not have his wife Nina’s blood on his hands. A famous real estate tycoon who avoided arrest for Nina’s disappearance, Nile is the subject of Aggie’s amateur sleuthing as she tries to prove his involvement one way or the other. Is Jarvis truly guilty, or is Aggie projecting her own tragic loss onto his life? Nile also has two sons, Preston and Wyatt Jarvis, played by twins Mason and Rocco Gozzi (Happy Gilmore 2).
Brittany Snow as Nina Jarvis
American actor Brittany Snow (The Hunting Wives, Pitch Perfect) portrays Nina Jarvis in The Beast in Me. Nina is the wife of Nile Jarvis, whose sudden vanishment sparks a police investigation that points to her husband Nile as the primary suspect. Whether Nina is alive and shown in the present or deceased and depicted in flashbacks is part of the show’s compelling mystery that viewers will need to tune in to for answers.
Natalie Morales as Shelley
Natalie Morales (Grey’s Anatomy, Santa Clarita Diet) plays Shelley, Aggie Wiggs’ ex-wife. Although no longer married, it’s assumed the two adopted a son (or underwent IVF) named Cooper. To retain the power of the central mystery, not much else has been divulged about Shelley thus far, although she’s clearly shown grieving in the photo above. However, as a main character, Shelley is sure to play a major role in proving Jarvis’s guilt.
Jonathan Banks & Julie Ann Emery as Martin & Lila Jarvis
American actors Jonathan Banks (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul) and Julie Ann Emery (Better Call Saul, Preacher) play Martin and Lila Jarvis in The Beast in Me. Martin and Lila are Nile Jarvis’s father and mother and will presumably defend their son’s innocence in Nina’s disappearance. Although little is known about their characters, Martin and Lila could, in theory, be involved in Nina’s fate.
Bill Irwin & Kate Burton as James & Mariah Ingram
Bill Irwin (Rachel Getting Married) and Kate Burton (Grey’s Anatomy) play James and Mariah Ingram, the father and mother of Nina Jarvis, in The Beast in Me. When their daughter goes missing and their successful son-in-law is suspected of malfeasance, James and Mariah must keep the family together as they search for answers.
Additional Characters in ‘The Beast in Me’
- David Lyons (Revolution, Truth Be Told) as Brian Abbott, the lead FBI Agent assigned to investigate Nina’s disappearance and/or the death of Aggie’s unnamed son.
- Hettienne Park (Black Rabbit, The Last of Us) as Erika Breton, an FBI Agent who works with Agent Abbott to solve Nina’s disappearance.
- Amir Arison (The Blacklist) as Frank Breton, Erika Breton’s ex-husband, who also works for the FBI.
- Tim Guinee (The Staircase, Inventing Anna) as Wrecking Ball, a nosy neighbor who is constantly a thorn in Jarvis’s side.
- Deirdre O’Connell (Eddington, The Penguin) as Carol McGiddish, Aggie’s literary agent and closest confidant.
- Aleyse Shannon (Black Christmas, Leverage: Redemption) as Olivia Benitez, a local city council representative who rejects Jarvis’ development plans.
- Susan Pourfar (The Staircase, Winning Time) as Lorna Fenig.
- Eleni Yiovas (Switch) as Christina Moore.
- Matthew James Thomas (Accused, Summer of Rockets) as Ellis Boyd/Jack.
- Raphael Sbarge (Once Upon a Time) as Jimmy Ryder.
All eight episodes of The Beast in Me are available to stream on Netflix beginning November 13, 2025.
- Release Date
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November 13, 2025
- Network
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Netflix