Sisterhood, Secrets, and Survival: How Regina Corrado and Olivia Milch Adapted “The Better Sister”

When Regina Corrado (The Strain, Deadwood) and Olivia Milch (Ocean’s Eight, Dude) set out to adapt Alafair Burke’s novel The Better Sister, they weren’t just looking to craft a compelling thriller from one of their favorite authors. They were looking to dig deep — into family trauma, the complexities of sisterhood (especially if they’re estranged), and the emotional toll of addiction.

The writers spoke with Creative Screenwriting Magazine about their approach to turning a psychological page-turner novel into layered, emotionally-charged, binge-worthy television.

What Attracted You To Alafair Burke’s Work?

Novelist Alafair Burke is known for her tightly wound thrillers, rich with red herrings and emotionally fraught relationships. Milch points out what drew them in. “She’s an expert at layering — the complexity of the twists and turns, the reveals. What really spoke to us was the love story between the sisters Chloe and Nicky. Beneath all the secrets, the lies, the betrayals — they still find their way back to each other.”

Regina Corrado. Photo courtesy of Prime Video

This emotional foundation was what allowed Corrado and Milch to go beyond a simple adaptation. Rather than sticking closely to the book’s plot, they used Burke’s narrative world as a springboard, expanding characters and backstory to explore the deeper psychological terrain of the sisters’ lives. A faithful adaptation isn’t always a literal one. Fidelity to character and theme often matters more than replicating every beat of the plot in the book.

Writing Through the Lens of Addiction Trauma

A central focus of the adaptation was the sisters’ shared — but vastly different — experience of childhood in an alcoholic household. “We really wanted to explore how two people can grow up in the same home and walk away with totally different interpretations of reality,” Milch explains. “That became the emotional engine of the show.”

The sisters, Chloe (Jessica Biel) and Nicky (Elizabeth Banks), interpret their family’s dysfunction in sharply contrasting ways. Chloe becomes the obsessive overachiever — polished, successful, in control. Nicky spirals into rebellion, addiction, and estrangement from her son Ethan (Maxwell Acee Donovan) and husband Adam (Corey Stoll). Despite their differences, the sisters are united by strategies for survival.

Character Construction: Archetypes with Depth

Corrado and Milch are asked to define their characters using five expected traits and one that might surprise the audience and give them pause to think about each.

For Chloe, Corrado lists: rescuer, ambitious, ruthless, overachieving, and unexpectedly vulnerable. “That vulnerability comes from being a child in an alcoholic family. She couldn’t save her mother, her sister, her husband — but she keeps trying,” Corrado says.

For Milch, Nicky is creative, chaotic, humorous, loyal — and, surprisingly, truthful. “At first glance, she seems like a liar common among addicts,” Milch says. “But her whole arc is about unearthing the truth, even when it hurts. That’s her commitment.”

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Structuring Emotional Arcs

One of the most powerful aspects of The Better Sister is how it plots the emotional evolution of the two sisters. While the murder mystery provides an underlying structure and a mystery storyline, the true drama lies in the shifting relationship between Chloe and Nicky. Corrado outlines the major milestones, “The reuniting. The question of whether they can live together. The confrontation of their different memories. The possibility of forgiveness and moving forward.”

Olivia Milch. Photo by Alexis Barzin

These touchpoints are more than just beats in the story — they’re transformational events that challenge and fundamentally change the characters.

The series also uses flashbacks to reveal how key events — like the father’s abusive behavior, Nicky’s addiction, and Chloe’s decision to take her sister’s son — fracture their relationship and provide some context and understanding for the audience. “We didn’t just want to show what happened,” Milch adds. “We wanted to show how each sister interpreted it. Because those interpretations are what shape who they are now.”

Secondary Characters 

While the story centers on Chloe and Nicky, the men in their lives reflect, process, and challenge their emotional journeys. Adam (formerly Nicky’s and currently Chloe’s husband), is the man both sisters fall for. “Adam’s angry, broken, and trying to be better,” adds Milch. “But he can’t escape the past. He carries his own family trauma in secret and that affects every relationship he has.”

Ethan, Chloe’s adopted son and Nicky’s biological child, embodies the next generation — the one that inherits all the unspoken damage and its deleterious effects on his well-being. “He walks on eggshells,” Corrado points out. “And when the truth comes out, it cracks his whole identity. That’s his journey — learning who he really is when all the lies fall away.”

Both male characters serve an important function in storytelling. They’re not just supporting roles, but mirrors that help reveal the protagonists’ blind spots.

Themes That Matter

The show is thematically dense — which can be a risk in less capable writing hands. But Corrado and Milch handle the material with nuance and poise. Asked to list the major themes, Corrado chooses motherhood, class, and family dysfunction. Milch adds addiction, competition, and sisterhood. Other thematic undercurrents include domestic violence, estrangement, and identity.

Writing from Lived Experience

What gives the show its emotional authenticity and gravitas is that both Corrado and Milch have personal experience with addiction in their own families. “We both grew up in households where alcoholism was present,” Milch shares. “As a kid, you learn to make yourself small, or funny, or invisible — anything to stay safe.” And it lingered into their adulthood. The Better Sister isn’t intended to be autobiographical, but Corrado and Milch’s upbringing filters into Nicky and Chloe.

Who Is The Better Sister?

In the end, the series circles back to its provocative title and central premise.

“We get asked that a lot,” Milch says, smiling. “And our answer is, ‘It changes minute to minute. One moment Chloe’s the hero, the next it’s Nicky. That’s what makes them real.’”

Corrado agrees. “They’re both terrible. And they’re both beautiful. Like all of us.” They’re trying to build a better life in non-ideal circumstances.

by Staff Writer

From our in-house editorial team.