Agatha Christie is one of, if not the best-known crime novelist ever. She published over 125 written works between 1924 and her death in 1976, including 74 novels. Her works have sold more than two billion copies and she is the second best-selling fiction author ever, second only to William Shakespeare.
Christie’s stories are ripe for adaptation; the first film adaptation came in 1928 with the first non-English language adaptation coming a year later. Foreign filmmakers have taken a particular liking to Christie’s work. Of the more than 30 film adaptations, 14 are non-English adaptations. The best adaptations of her work are wide-ranging and are made in many different countries.
Updated on March 2nd, 2022 by Amanda Bruce: Agatha Christie’s countless mystery novels continue to be popular among readers all over the world. They are always being adapted into television series and movies whether they’re stand-alone stories or part of the mysteries solved by Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot. While miniseries and special presentations on television tend to be more common than movies (even Doctor Who has featured stories inspired by the writer), new movies continue to release as well, like the 2022 adaptation of Death On The Nile.
18 Black Coffee (1931) – 6.1
- Unavailable to stream
Black Coffee is the second Christie adaptation from Twickenham Studios. It stars Austin Trevor as Hercule Poirot and is based on the 1929 stage play of the same name. Christie wrote the play in response to the film adaptations made up to that point. In the story, Poirot and a friend, Arthur Hastings, visit a physicist only to discover his body.
The plot revolves around a secret formula the physicist was working on and the motives each previous visitor had for murdering him. Just don’t plan on seeing it anytime soon. It is considered a lost film and no known copies exist.
17 Crooked House (2017) – 6.3
- Available to stream on Netflix
Christie is known for her twists and turns in her novels, and Crooked House is the epitome of that. It’s been adapted several times, but the 2017 adaptation features a star-studded cast in Glen Close, Gillian Anderson, Christina Hendricks, and Max Irons.
Irons plays the detective, a former diplomat who returns to England when an old flame employs him to investigate a murder in her family. Of course, she hires someone she has a history with because she wants to make sure Scotland Yard isn’t able to expose her family’s secrets to the public. The story is as much a family drama as it is a mystery.
16 Murder On The Orient Express (2017) – 6.5
- Available to stream through Direct TV
Murder On The Orient Express is one of the most often adapted (or alluded to) of Christie’s work. It’s been radio shows, TV specials, movies, video games, and even inspired other episodes of television in homage. Despite many fans of Christie knowing the ending since it was originally published in 1934, the audience is still captivated by all of the twists and turns as literally everyone Poirot comes into contact with is a suspect.
Kenneth Branagh as Poirot in this version of the story is incredibly fun to watch, and the huge cast of stars (Penelope Cruz, Daisy Ridley, Leslie Odom Jr., amongst others) lend gravitas to their roles.
15 Death On The Nile (2022) – 6.6
Branagh returns as Poirot in this sequel to Murder On The Orient Express. Here, he’s just trying to take a vacation, but of course, his time of relaxation is interrupted by murder.
Like its predecessor, Death On The Nile is full of twists, turns, and dramatic accusations. It’s also got a more lush backdrop and a bigger budget for costumes to reflect the opulence of the trip. Visually, the movie is stunning, and a cast featuring Gal Gadot, Letitia Wright, and Rose Leslie certainly makes it as star-studded as the previous one.
14 Alibi (1931) – 6.7
Alibi was the first Christie adaptation from Twickenham Studios and, like Black Coffee, stars Austin Trevor as Hercule Poirot and is considered a lost film. Even if it is a lost film, it’s still notable for being the first Christie adaptation to feature Hercule Poirot.
It’s based on the 1928 play of the same name, which itself was based on Christie’s 1926 novel The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. Alibi features a character named Caryll Sheppard, who became the inspiration for Miss Marple, Christie’s other great detective character.
13 Ten Little Indians (1965) – 6.7
- Available to stream through Direct TV
Ten Little Indians is based on Agatha Christie’s novel And Then There Were None but this movie is set in a mansion in the snowy Alps as ten people are invited to a remote location by a mysterious host. The host doesn’t appear and instead leaves a message claiming that each person is responsible for the death of another and will be killed during their stay at the mansion.
The message comes to fruition as guests keep turning up dead in the mansion and the remaining survivors have to figure out who the mysterious killer is before they reach the same fate.
12 Seven Dials Mystery (1981) – 6.8
- Available to stream on Brit Box
Seven Dials Mystery is based on the Christie novel of the same name and again follows a mystery after a murder, although this novel seemed to be in a different style than most of her earlier work. The movie follows Lady Eileen “Bundle” Brent who investigates the murder of Gerry Wade she knew as the mystery continues to escalate.
Bundle uncovers a larger conspiracy as another man is killed and she learns of the existence of a secret society that is involved in both murders.
11 Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? (1980) – 7.0
- Available to stream on Brit Box
Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? is a detective novel by Agatha Christie and the 1980 movie is based on the book of the same name. The movie follows Bobby Jones as he investigates the murder of a man he comes across while golfing whose last words are “why didn’t they ask Evans?”
Jones starts to do a deep dive into the man’s life and tries to uncover the mystery of his fatal wounds on the golf course that day.
10 Evil Under the Sun (1982) – 7.1
- Available to stream on Brit Box
Evil Under the Sun is a Hercule Poirot story based on the Christie novel of the same name starring a great cast including Peter Ustinov as Poirot and the legendary Dame Maggie Smith as Mrs. Castle, the owner of the hotel. The movie follows Poirot as he tries to solve the case of the mysterious death of an unpopular actor.
The movie takes place at a resort hotel as Poirot does his detective work by interviewing everyone at the resort and trying to solve the mystery.
9 Murder Most Foul (1964) – 7.2
- Available to stream on Brit Box
Margaret Rutherford stars as Miss Marple in this black and white murder mystery based on the Christie novel of the same name. Miss Marple believes that a man about to be convicted of murder is actually innocent, so she looks into the case herself to prove his innocence and find the real killer.
Miss Marple’s investigation leads her to join a theater group where yet another actor is found dead after she starts her investigation. The closer she gets to the killer the more danger she finds herself in as she uncovers the secrets of the characters’ past.
8 Murder At The Gallop (1963) – 7.3
- Available to stream on Brit Box
Murder at the Gallop adapts Christie’s 1952 novel After the Funeral. Funeral is a suspense novel with Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, but Gallop is a light comedy with Dame Margaret Rutherford’s amateur detective Miss Marple. Gallop is also a sequel to Murder, She Said, Rutherford’s first outing as Marple. The story begins with the death of a wealthy recluse.
His sister states her belief that he was murdered before being found dead herself. Marple investigates while at a riding school operated by the surviving heirs. The killer’s motive is revealed to be something that may not have required the recluse’s death at all.
7 Death on the Nile (1978) – 7.3
- Available to stream through The Criterion Channel
Death on the Nile is Peter Ustinov’s first outing as Hercule Poirot. The film takes place mostly on a paddle steamer traveling down the Nile River. The boat’s itinerary, which includes several famous Egyptian landmarks, is physically impossible. The film begins with a honeymooner being killed with her husband and his ex-lover still on the boat.
The ex-lover is there despite Poirot’s objections and warnings. Other passengers have their reasons for murdering the victim, but the walls begin to close in on both Poirot and the killer as they too start to die.
6 Murder On The Orient Express (1974) – 7.3
- Available to stream on Paramount+
Albert Finney is the only Poirot to receive an Academy Award nomination, garnering praise for his acting in 1974’s Murder on the Orient Express. The ensemble is filled out with an all-star cast, with Ingrid Bergman, Sean Connery, Lauren Bacall, and Vanessa Redgrave all appearing in the film.
The film received six Academy Award nominations, Actor for Finney, Supporting Actress for Bergman, Adapted Screenplay, Score, Cinematography, and Costume Design. Bergman won Supporting Actress for playing the role of Greta Ohlsson. Christie was quoted as saying the film was “well made,” but for one mistake: Finney’s tiny mustache.
5 Murder, She Said (1961) – 7.4
- Available to stream on Brit Box
Murder, She Said is Dame Margaret Rutherford’s first appearance as Miss Marple. Marple sees a woman strangled on a train. She embarks on her investigation after the police rebuff her due to a lack of evidence.
Her investigation involves getting a job at the estate where she believes the woman’s body is and interviewing the various suspects inside the house. The police come around to her investigation when she finds the woman’s body in a horse stable. Fans clearly loved Rutherford in the role and it’s easy to see why.
4 And Then There Were None (1945) – 7.4
- Available to stream on Kanopy
This 1945 film is the first of several adaptations of Christie’s best-selling novel. The story focuses on ten people who have traveled to a hotel in the Iranian desert and are accused of murder. None of the actions the ten are accused of are legally defined as murder and so they cannot legally be held accountable for murder.
The ten also find a framed copy of “Ten Little Indians” in each of their bedrooms and a sculpture of 10 people in a circle in the dining room. Things escalate when one of them dies and a figurine disappears. The film is currently in the public domain.
3 Shubho Mahurat (2003) – 7.7
- Available to stream on Eros Now
Shubho Mahurat is a Bengali-language adaptation of Christie’s 1962 novel The Mirror Crack’d from Side to Side. In Mahurat, the main character is a film producer newly arrived in India.
When an actress she casts dies, the suspicion initially falls on that actress’s husband who is accused of an affair with another woman. Miss Marple (who is not the main character) is the aunt of a journalist who becomes heavily tied into the film’s production.
2 Desyat Negrityat (1987) – 7.9
- Available to rent on Amazon
This Soviet adaptation of And Then There Were None is notable among None adaptations because of its adherence to the novel. Negrityat makes few changes in the transition from script to screen, unlike many English-language adaptations.
This includes using the novel’s ending rather than that of the stage play. In the stage play (and therefore most film adaptations), at least two characters are innocent of the crimes of which they are accused.
1 Witness For The Prosecution (1957) – 8.4
- Available to stream on Kanopy
Billy Wilder directed this adaptation of Christie’s short story of the same name. It starred Tyrone Power in his final film role as Leonard Vole, accused of murdering a widow who had made him the sole beneficiary of her will. Charles Laughton plays a lawyer who believes Vole is innocent despite circumstantial evidence pointing toward his guilt.
The film also stars Marlene Dietrich as Power’s wife. Witness received six Academy Award nominations: Best Picture, Director, Actor for Charles Laughton, Supporting Actress for Elsa Lanchester, Film Editing, and Sound Recording.