A decade after its debut, 'The Night Manager' returns for a second season on BBC and Amazon Prime, with Tom Hiddleston reprising his role as spy Jonathan Pine. Director Georgi Banks-Davies discusses adapting the John le Carré thriller for a post-truth era and expanding beyond the original novels with the author's blessing. The six-part series explores themes of identity and national allegiance in a post-Brexit world.
The original 'The Night Manager' aired ten years ago as a BBC/AMC co-production, adapting John le Carré's novel. It featured Tom Hiddleston as Jonathan Pine, a former soldier turned hotel worker infiltrating arms dealer Richard Roper, played by Hugh Laurie. The series earned acclaim, securing two Emmys—including one for director Suzanne Bier—and three Golden Globes for Hiddleston, Laurie, and Olivia Colman, whose win marked her first major U.S. honor.
Season 2, launching January 11, picks up with Pine in the secret service under a new alias, leading a London surveillance unit. When operations falter, he targets a Colombian arms cartel amid Britain's post-Brexit identity struggles. Filmed across the UK, Colombia, Spain, and France, the production treated the six episodes as a single six-hour film, granting Banks-Davies substantial creative freedom.
Banks-Davies, known for directing 'I Hate Suzie' and Netflix's 'Kaos,' received the opportunity two years ago. 'I got an out of the blue phone call from my agent saying, ‘Guess what, they want to see you for The Night Manager.’ And honestly, my first reaction was, ‘Oh my God, incredible,'' she told Variety. She met producers from The Ink Factory—le Carré's children—and writer David Farr, emphasizing character development over replication of the first season.
This marks the first expansion of le Carré's spy universe beyond his books, a direction he approved before his 2020 death at age 89. 'He’d given it his blessing—he wanted them to do it,' Banks-Davies noted, trusting Farr's deep knowledge of the material. The series delves into contemporary issues: 'We live in a post-truth world now... The show goes on to kind of really examine the idea of who we are based on where we come from and the ideals that we hold.'
Admiring Bier's trailblazing work, Banks-Davies connected with her post-filming. A third season is in early development by Farr, potentially forming a trilogy. Banks-Davies now focuses on film projects, including a book adaptation about a young woman and a period racing drama centered on a female driver.
