James R | On 05, Mar 2023

The Night Manager Season 2 is officially in the works, with filming reportedly taking place this year.

A contemporary interpretation of John le Carré’s espionage drama – and the first television adaptation of a le Carré novel in more than 20 years – The Night Manager brought together love, loss and revenge in a complex story of modern criminality. Airing in 2016, the series followed former British soldier Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston) who was recruited by intelligence operative Angela Burr (Olivia Colman) to infiltrate the inner circle of international businessman Richard Onslow Roper (Hugh Laurie) and detonate the unholy alliance he has ministered between the intelligence community and the secret arms trade. To get to the heart of Roper’s vast empire, Pine crossed paths with Roper’s chief of staff, Major Corkoran (Tom Hollander), and Roper’s girlfriend, Jed (Elizabeth Debicki).

“Susanne Brier’s nail-biting adaptation of John le Carré’s thriller feels like it was written yesterday,” we wrote in our review of Season 1.

Penned by David Farr, the BBC’s co-production with AMC was one of the most talked-about hits of 2016, boasting Olivia Colman and David Harewood among its supporting cast and earning multiple Emmy and Golden Globes wins. It led to another le Carré adaptation from producers The Ink Factory — run by le Carré’s sons, Simon and Stephen Cornwell — in the form of Little Drummer Girl, starring Florence Pugh.

Since then, there has been much speculation about the prospect of a second season. Now, Deadline reports that it is finally in the works between Amazon Prime Video and the Beeb, with Tom Hiddleston set to reprise his role as Jonathan Pine. The project has reportedly not yet been formally greenlit, but Deadline’s sources say it is set to receive a two-season order.

David Farr is back to write Season 2, which is rumoured to be set in the present day, with Pine being informed that Roper is dead before having to face up to a new, deadlier challenge.

Filming will reportedly take place in London and South America under the codename Steelworks.
 

The Night Manager Season 2 is “slowly being developed”

8th March 2017

The Night Manager Season 2 is “slowly being developed”, its director has revealed.

Danish helmer extraordinaire Susanne Bier wowed British audiences last year, when she directed BBC One’s adaptation of John Le Carre’s The Night Manager. Starring Tom Hiddleston as a hotel employee who becomes wrapped up in an arms dealer and other nefarious types, the co-production with AMC was one of the most talked-about hits of 2016, earning multiple Emmy wins and sparking talk of Hiddleston as the new James Bond.

Speculation has been rife ever since about whether the Beeb would cash in with a second run. While scriptwriter David Farr has previously said he wasn’t keen to continue the story on from Le Carre’s one-off novel, though, Bier has now confirmed that the drama is set to return, with Season 2 “slowly being developed”.

“We all want very much to do a season two but the thing we absolutely do not want is to do something that does not live up to the level of season one,” she told Broadcast. “That would be a really bad idea.”

Her comments follow enthusiastic remarks by Simon Cornwell, the author’s son and producer of the series.

“Of course, the broadcasters would love to do another series,” he said at a Royal Television Society event last year.

“There’s no book and there’s never been a Le Carré story that has been extended beyond the confines of the novel. It would be interesting to try that.”

The second season would presumably see Hiddleston return as Jonathan Pine, with fans also keen to see Olivia Colman reprise her role of intelligence officer Angela Burr, who recruited Pine to spy on arms dealer Richard Roper (Hugh Laurie) and his girlfriend, Jed (Elizabeth Debicki).

A “team of writers” is currently working on the sequel, Bier added.

The Ink Factory, the production company behind The Night Manager, meanwhile, is also in the process of adapting another Le Carre novel for the screen: The Spy Who Came in From the Cold. Simon Beaufoy is

The production company behind The Night Manager, The Ink Factory, is also in the process of bringing another John Le Carré novel, The Spy Who Came In From the Cold, to the screen. Oscar-winning screenwriter Simon Beaufoy is adapting the book, with no word yet on casting.

To read our review of the series, plus find out how to catch up, click here.

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