Simon Baker hasn’t been seen much since The Mentalist was canceled, marking the end of his time in the role of Patrick Jane. The series, which ran for seven seasons on CBS, ended in 2015 with a shortened season . Baker has only taken a handful of roles in movies and shows since then, with most of them being small.
While he did recently appear on the Netflix miniseries Boy Swallows Universe , Baker is now poised to make a big TV comeback. However, this welcome piece of news comes with a bit of a twist. The Guardian actor is adapting Emily Perkins’ novel, Lioness , alongside Bruna Papadrea’s Made Up Stories and Australian producer Lee-Anne Higgins.
According to Deadline , Simon Baker is set to direct all episodes of the series, which follows Therese Thorne. Per the trade, the character is described as a woman who finds herself at the center of a fraud investigation after marrying a wealthy older gentleman and forging a career for herself. All the while, Thorne finds herself having interactions with Claire, a neighbor who seemingly entices her to take a walk on the wild side as she deals with her legal entanglements.
It's unknown if the Home and Away alum will also star in the series, as casting news has not yet been announced. Lioness is only his latest directing gig, as he previously directed the 2017 film Breathe , five episodes of The Mentalist and one episode of The Guardian . He'll will also serve as producer on the upcoming show, meaning that even if he isn’t star.