Tom Hiddleston could be returning to one of his best roles – aside from the MCU‘s Loki, of course – as Jonathan Pine in The Night Manager. Interpreted by many as Hiddleston’s ‘James Bond audition,’ The Night Manager is based on the book by John le Carré – known for his spy novels such as Tinker Tailor Solider Spy and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold. The first season of The Night Manager (broadcast in 2016) also starred Hugh Laurie, Olivia Colman, Elizabeth Debicki, and Tom Hollander.
Under the codename Steelworks, Deadline understands Season 2 will film later this year in London and South America. Although it is yet to be formally greenlit by Amazon and the BBC, it will reportedly receive a two-season order.
The first season (which was one of the best TV series of the 2010s) was set in the aftermath of the Arab Spring, with the prologue finding Pine working in a hotel in Egypt during the 2011 uprising. Most of the first season was set in 2015, and the second season will reportedly be set now.
According to Deadline, the new season will follow on from British arms dealer Richard Roper (Hugh Laurie) being taken away by the Syrians at the end of season one. Hiddleston’s Pine is informed that Roper is dead two years later, and he has to face up to a new, even more deadly challenge. Hiddleston was recently busy filming Loki season 2, and starred in Apple TV show The Essex Serpent with Claire Danes.
John le Carré has had something of a resurgence in the 2010s, with a new thriller movie version of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy starring Gary Oldman, A Most Wanted Man starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, and another big-budget miniseries – The Little Drummer Girl starring Alexander Skarsgard and Florence Pugh.
While we wait for more Night Manager, check out our guide to the best spy movies.