Rian Johnson and Natasha Lyonne have teamed up for a new case-of-the-week series premiering next month. The Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery filmmaker serves as writer, director, and producer of Poker Face, which stars Lyonne as Charlie Cale. Cale travels around the country solving murders equipped with a special gift: she knows exactly when someone is lying to her. The series will also feature an impressive list of guest stars like Joseph Gordon Levitt, Adrien Brody, Nick Nolte, Chloë Sevigny, Ellen Barkin, Tim Meadows, Jameela Jamil, and Lil Rel Howery, among others.

Poker Face was inspired by the beloved detective series of the past (think Columbo) when cases were resolved within an episode. Speaking with Empire, Johnson discussed why he looked to the past when creating the series:

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On her end, Lyonne tells the publication that she is attracted to a character who leans into her talents:

“You sat down and you got an entire story. There was usually a fun guest star, and it was always anchored by a truly cool, charismatic personality. The fact that with each new episode we can attack a totally different style and story and cast … it’s something similar to the mystery movies with Daniel [Craig]. If I can keep doing it, then I will.”

“I really love the accidental detective. You know, the person who stumbles into a life of solving things just because their brain works that way.”

The Talented Team Behind Poker Face

     Netflix

Lyonne is a veteran actress best known for her appearances on Orange is the New Black and Russian Doll, which she also co-created. She received Emmy nominations for both Netflix series. Other notable credits include Everyone Says I Love You, Slums of Beverly Hills, But I’m a Cheerleader, Scary Movie 2, Party Monster, Ad Astra, and the American Pie film series.

Johnson directorial credits mostly revolve around mystery films, including 2005’s Brick, Knives Out and its sequel, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. Johnson also wrote and directed the billion dollar grossing Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Glass Onion is available to stream on Netflix, with another Knives Out mystery pending, as the streamer and Johnson have a hefty production deal.

The first four episodes of Poker Face premiere Thursday, January 26, 2023, on Peacock. Remaining episodes will air on a weekly basis. The 10-episode series is executive produced by Sam Bergman, Nora Zuckerman, Lila Zuckerman, Lyonne, Nena Rodrigue, and Iain B. Macdonald. Maya Rudolph, Lyonne’s Animal Pictures partner, and Danielle Renfrew Behrens co-executive produce.