Following its September broadcast on BBC One, Inside Man is now on Netflix and gaining U.S. fans fast. The crime drama from Steven Moffat stars Stanley Tucci as the « Death Row Detective, » a former criminology professor convicted of the vicious murder of his wife. In Season 1, Jefferson Grieff cracks a case that involves a « dark vicar, » played by Doctor Who‘s David Tennant. But within four episodes, the case is closed, and spectacularly so. Might this be all for the wickedly witty series? Don’t bet on it.
Neither BBC One nor Netflix has officially renewed Inside Man for a second season. But here’s why we’re pretty convinced we’ll see more of Jefferson Grieff.
Will Steven Moffat sign on for Season 2 of Inside Man?
In October of 2022, Moffat hinted in an interview with Radio Times that there might be potential for a second season of Inside Man. « The story will end in four episodes, » he said, « It’s done by the end of that. As to whether or not you could ever spin-off anything or do any kind of sequel? I don’t know at this moment. »
The mind behind the wildly successful Sherlock series teased that the show’s return would depend on audience reception — and if he could come up with a new story.
« Television is littered with shows that had one season and pretended they could carry on, » Moffat mused. « I would never want to be one of those, where you’re so excited to get a phone call about doing another run that you do it and then realise, actually, the story is finished. »
Does Inside Man have a story for Season 2?
You betcha. Those who stayed through the credits of the final episode witness a tease for what could be the Death Row Detective’s next case.
In this scene, a surprising meeting takes place. Janice Fife (Dolly Wells), the math tutor turned near-murder victim, is sitting in Grieff’s makeshift office at the high-security prison. The hammer blows to her head are still visible but nearly healed, suggesting not much time has passed since she escaped the clutches of the Watling family.
As the theme song « God’s Gonna Cut You Down » plays, Grieff and his sidekick Dillon (Atkins Estimond) enter, take their seats, and are shackled to the table in a pose of patience. Though the Death Row Detective saved her life, Janice isn’t there for thanks. « So, you have a case, » Grieff says with a slight smile. « You do understand that I’m pressed for time. »
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There’s one week left until he’s scheduled to be executed by the state. Janice wants him to use that time to earn her a grim form of justice: She needs help murdering her husband. Who better to ask for guidance than a man who mercilessly slaughtered his wife? Well, maybe someone who didn’t get caught.
When she remarks he doesn’t seem surprised by her request, Grieff responds with a shrug. « This is Death Row, Janice. Everyone is a murderer. How can I help? »
What other mysteries might Season 2 of Inside Man solve?
Well, the mystery of what actually went down between Grieff and his late wife, for starters!
In a clever move, Moffat scatters details of the crime across Season 1. First, we learn that Grieff murdered his wife, strangling her to death. Later, it’s revealed he also mutilated her corpse. Specifically, Grieff decapitated her body and then hid the head…somewhere. The location of the head is desperately sought by her father, who also happens to be Grieff’s former best friend, who also happens to be some sort of super powerful shady figure able to summon a private army at a moment’s notice and has the FBI desperate for a reason to bring him in.
That’s a lot of setups for Moffat to leave unexplored. And we haven’t even met Grieff’s mother-in-law. Consider the top-notch casting that Season 1 brought with Tucci, Wells, Estimond, and Tennant, as well as Kate Dickie, Lydia West, Dylan Baker, and Lyndsey Marshal. Now, dare to dream what incredible talent might be brought to a much-anticipated Season 2.
This world of dark vicars, darker humor, and horrid homicide is Moffat’s oyster.
He could play it Only Murders In the Building-style, chasing down the case teased in the finale’s final moment. Or, he could go Knives Out and pitch his fascinating detective into an anthology format with a new cast of characters and a new setting. Well, not an entirely new setting, since Grieff is still on Death Row and all. But that brings me to a bigger point: Moffat can’t waste that ticking clock.
What could happen in Inside Man Season 2?
In Season 1, Moffat had bone-chilling fun with the ticking clock counting down to potential death(s?) in that cellar. Over the course of a couple of days in story time, he unfurled a glittering net of intrigue, betrayals, crime, and conspiracy. And Grieff still has one week to live, and a ticking clock that ends with lethal injection. What might his final days look like? What havoc might he cause? What moral worth might be unearthed?
It’s impossible to imagine what a storyteller like Moffat could concoct, after bending the rules of time for years on Doctor Who and spinning a one-season Sherlock Holmes arc into 4 seasons (or series as they say in the UK).
So, for our money, it’s not a question of if Inside Man will come back but when.
