Bodies season 2: Netflix show's writer addresses whether the Stephen Graham thriller will return

bodies
(Image credit: Netflix)

Warning - the below article discusses the Bodies finale. If you are yet to finish the show, turn away now...

New thriller Bodies is the latest series to take over Netflix, shooting straight to the top spot after receiving rave reviews. Based on the DC Vertigo comic of the same name, viewers can't get enough of this twisty time-travelling murder mystery which stars beloved actor Stephen Graham. Four bodies. Four detectives. Across four different timelines. Let's be honest, that premise alone easily sells the show!

It's certainly been a rollercoaster and naturally after that exciting finale, fans are already questioning whether it will be renewed for a season 2. From one quick look on Twitter, you can see that the internet is demanding an answer. Which is understandable, given that the show concludes with a small hint that it could return...

Does Bodies set up a season 2?

Stephen Graham in Bodies

(Image credit: Netflix)

Although the finale of Bodies appears to end things on a positive note, with the city of London seemingly saved, there is a small hint that danger lies ahead. As Shahara Hasan (Amaka Okafor) starts to relax in the back of a taxi, it's revealed that the cab driver is none other than Maplewood (Shira Haas) who we last saw sent back in time to 1890. The fact that she is now in 2023 alone is a red flag...

Their following conversation also has a layer of threat, as Hasan says that she feels like London could erupt at any time, being on the edge of something big. Maplewood replies with what could be read as a warning: "I know exactly what you mean."

The final card is then played as the closing shot looks at the London skyline, which is just how we know it except for one tiny detail: the flashing KYAL (Know You Are Loved) sign on a skyscraper, which we have only seen before in the dystopian 2053 timeline. Things clearly aren't how they should be then, with that nod to Elias' (Stephen Graham) dangerous doomsday cult teasing that maybe, just maybe, it wasn't completely shut down. The details of course are unclear, but there's plenty of food for thought.

Will Bodies return for a season 2?

Shira Haas in Bodies

(Image credit: Netflix)

Despite that intriguing tease, Bodies writer Paul Tomalin himself has already ruled out the show returning for a season 2 telling Hello! that he sees it as a "one and done" limited series. In fact, that was always the intention right from the initial pitch, as he revealed: "We went to Netflix like 'this is one series, this is a one and done, we wanna close this off' because I think when you have such an amazing concept up front, you [expletive] your audience off if you don't solve it. As the viewer, I hate it when you get this amazing thing, and at the end it's like, 'duh, duh, duh,' and you're like 'right so I've got to wait a year and a half'. I think it's a duty to an audience with something that's this propulsive as a story concept to end it and solve it. So, we really wanted you to feel that you'd seen the red curtain at the end. That being said, when you see the back end, there's certainly a dot dot dot. But the premise that the show sets comes to an end." 

Whilst that is disappointing news for fans craving more from the hit show, there is a potential glimmer of hope as Tomalin added: "And it was a privilege to be like, well, if it doesn't get a second season, then this is the meal, there's the dessert, there's the coffee. It's the whole thing. Closure."

That acknowledgement of a potential second season is at least something - whilst it seems like Tomalin won't be up for returning, it looks like he realizes that Netflix might renew it anyways. And with Bodies being such a great success, it's looking increasingly like a possibility. Fans will just have to hold out hope that the bodies will continue to pile up.


Bodies is available to watch now on Netflix. For what else to watch on the streaming platform, check out our guides to the best Netflix shows and the best Netflix movies too.

Emily Murray
Entertainment Editor

As Entertainment Editor at GamesRadar, I oversee all the online content for Total Film and SFX magazine. Previously I've worked for the BBC, Zavvi, UNILAD, Yahoo, Digital Spy and more.