Following a misleading report in a British trade this week, questions have arisen as to the status of a second season of BBC/AMC hit event series, The Night Manager. The partners, along with producer The Ink Factory, have sought to quell the hullabaloo that story caused, clearly stating that nothing is set. In a statement today, they say, “The Ink Factory, BBC and AMC are in the early stages of developing a potential second series of The Night Manager, but nothing is definite yet and we have nothing to announce.”
There’s no question fans of and the folks behind the Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning spy drama would like to see it return. But there are certain obstacles in the way which include the fact that the source material’s author, John le Carré, has “never allowed his characters to go off-book,” executive producer Stephen Garrett told me this week.
Further, he said, “There’s not even a script. There’s just conversations and thoughts… It’s not ruled out and it’s not ruled in. It’s entirely possible and we’d love to do it.”
He added, “The official position, which is also the truth — I know that’s unusual but there you go — is that we’re thinking about it; we’re doing a kind of feasibility study.”
He continued, “In an ideal world we’d love there to be another one. But if we do it, we just have to make sure it’s at least as good as, if not better.”
As for director Susanne Bier, she told me, “We would love to do it, but with the book it’s quite a challenge.”
In a cheekily ominous tone, referencing his character Richard Roper, star Hugh Laurie added, “You don’t see me die…”
