Harlan Coben has responded to the popular fan theory linking Knives Out and the Fool Me Once creator

The classic murder mystery genre has had a revitalisation in the last 5-10 years, and you can almost exclusively thank two men in particular.

Rian Johnson, the man behind Knives Out, and Harlan Coben – the author whose books have been adapted into multiple beloved Netflix series, such as Fool Me Once.

Murder mysteries haven’t been this in fashion since the days of Agatha Christie and Sherlock Holmes.

Knives Out in 2019 was a hit, leading Netflix to buy the next two sequels. (Netflix)

Whilst there has been shows such as Sherlock and Mare of Easttown, none quite hit the old school Clue-esque vibe like Knives Out and the Harlan Coben series.

With these two being at the forefront of the genre being brought back to life, it’s no surprise that fans have looked for links between the two.

The first Knives Out has a popular fan theory that, when you see it, you’re unable to see the film the same.

The victim of the first film is Harlan Thrombey, a murder mystery writer who has a vast publishing empire – and there is a plotline in the film surrounding TV adaptations of his work.

Christopher Plummer as 'Harlan Thrombey'

Sound familiar?

If you haven’t connected the dots yet, I’ll do it for you. According to many fans, Harlan Thrombey is very clearly an altered version of Harlan Coben.

The books of Coben are even stylistically similar to Knives Out, full of twists, reveals, and in the case of Fool Me Once, creepy posh manors.

This hasn’t gone unnoticed by Coben though, who was asked about this link on Barstool’s Kevin Clancy Show.

Whilst on the show, he was asked about Knives Out, before the host cuts right to the chase and says: “I mean that guy is you right?”

Harlan Coben, who wrote Fool Me Once. (Chesnot via Getty Images)

The famous murder mystery author plays coy, saying he’s unsure – but acknowledging ‘the book covers look like mine.’

Coben went on to tell a hilarious story about the link, saying:

“My kids sent me this thing when the trailer came out.

“Here's a quick name drop, a really braggy story. But I wrote to Jamie Lee Curtis, who I know, after I saw the movie, and I'm like, ‘what's with the lead character's name?’

“Her response was ‘I’ve been waiting six months for this email’.

“I don't want to know, I'm not contacting anybody. Let's pretend it's me and move on with our lives!”

Check out the full clip:

Whether the link was intentional or not, you will never be able to convince me this was unintentional on Rian Johnson’s part.

The pair continue to go from strength to strength, with two Harlan Coben novels being greenlit following the success of Fool Me Once, and Rian Johnson’s third Knives Out movie set to feature an all-star cast.