Netflix’s Latest Hit Series Has Somehow Survived The Cancel Curse
Netflix's The Night Agent has been renewed for a second season.
Just a week after its debut, The Night Agent has been renewed for a second season. After reaching the number one spot on Netflix, with 168.7 million hours viewed, the streamer ordered a second batch of episodes which will be released in 2024. The move marks the fastest renewal for the platform which usually uses 28-day data to determine the future of a project.
Speaking about The Night Agent renewal, Vice President of Drama Series Jinny Howe said Netflix is happy with the show’s breakout performance. “We’re proud to see [the series] become instantly embraced around the world,” he said via Deadline. “We’re here to bring them more of the action and suspense they love.”
Created by Shawn Ryan, The Night Agent is based on the novel of the same name by Matthew Quirk. The story follows Peter Sutherland, an FBI agent who finds himself engaged in a complex conspiracy about a mole within the United States government. To save his country, Peter hunts for the traitor, while protecting a woman named Rose Larkin from the people who murdered her aunt and uncle.
The Night Agent stars Gabriel Basso as Peter Sutherland and Luciane Buchanan as Rose Larkin. Fola Evans-Akingbola appears as Chelsea Arrington, an ambitious U.S. Secret Service agent. Sarah Desjardins stars as the Vice President’s daughter Maddie Redfield. T
he cast also features Eve Harlow, Phoenix Raei, Enrique Murciano, and D. B. Woodside Hong Chau.
Shawn Ryan serves as showrunner for The Night Agent while also handling executive producing duties via MiddKid Productions. The first episode was directed by Seth Gordon, who also serves as executive producer alongside Marney Hochman, Julia Gunn, Jamie Vanderbilt, and William Sherak, Paul Neinstein. Nicole Tossou from Project X and David Beaubaire for Sunset Lane Media also produce.
The Night Agent creator has had an overall deal at Sony Pictures Television since 2011. He told The Hollywood Reporter the studio targeted Netflix for the series. He explained that a lot of popular shows like The Crown, Cobra Kai, The Boys, and The Last of Us, are produced by Sony.
But due to the cost-cutting efforts at their various platforms, they want to have partners to share the burden.
Ryan said that’s the appeal of working with a studio that doesn’t have its own streaming platform. The Night Agent showrunner is currently waiting for news about his Sony-produced CBS procedural drama S.W.A.T. He told the publication the decision hinges on the studio coming up with more “favorable economics” on the drama.
S.W.A.T. is based on the 1975 television series of the same name created by Robert Hamner. The series premiered on CBS in November 2017. “It’s up in the air whether it will get picked up for a seventh season, and that has nothing to do with ratings,” Ryan said. “You would never see that situation 15 years ago,” he said of the changing landscape of television.
Meanwhile, the first season of The Night Agent is currently available to stream on Netflix. While plot details for season two are scarce, Ryan said the story would open a new chapter for Peter. The story will also venture beyond the source material.
