Latest news with #Edinburgh-set
Elle
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Elle
The ‘Dept. Q' Showrunner Already Has Ideas for Season 2
Every item on this page was chosen by an ELLE editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy. Spoilers ahead. Netflix's latest thriller series, Dept. Q, has been a hit with viewers for a plethora of reasons. From attractive and damaged detective Carl Morck—played by eternal heartthrob Matthew Goode—to the extremely twisted cold case his team is tasked with solving, viewers eagerly binged the first season of the Edinburgh-set crime drama. But will Dept. Q be back for a second season? Here's what we know so far. While Netflix has yet to confirm Dept. Q will be back for season 2, the cast and crew have made it clear they'll return to the show in a heartbeat. Matthew Goode described playing Dept. Q's moody detective as 'very freeing,' telling the BBC, 'All these characters have trauma but they're also hilarious, you really root for him.' The actor continued, 'He's so rude to people that their eyebrows shoot off their faces.' While speaking to Collider, Goode shared his hopes for a second season, including the possibility viewers would 'see a bit more of what Carl's life is and his home life, which is a very interesting throuple that's going on.' Goode was, of course, referring to his character's awkward living situation, as Morck resides with his stepson Jasper (Aaron McVeigh), and lodger Martin (Sanjeev Kohli). In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Goode further expressed excitement about returning to play Carl Morck. 'We got to create a different past [for the character],' the actor explained. 'So [Morck] is still a bit of a mystery to people, which is, again, why I want to come back.' In an interview with Cosmopolitan UK, actress Chloe Pirrie, who plays kidnapped prosecutor Merritt Lingard in season 1, said, 'I think [a second season] would be really great for the great for Scotland to have a show like this run again. It's definitely something we would all want.' The actress also told Yahoo UK that, having spent much of the season 1 shoot in isolation, she was thrilled to watch Dept. Q's team of detectives at work. 'I just loved meeting all those characters on the screen and I just think, 'I've got to spend more time with these people,'' she explained. 'I want to see that team do more stuff together.' One of the reasons Dept. Q is highly likely to be renewed for a second season is its source material. While Netflix's TV series relocated the action to Scotland, Dept. Q is actually based on a Copenhagen-set book series by Danish crime writer Jussi Adler-Olsen. Just like in the TV adaptation, Adler-Olsen's 10 novels follow former homicide detective Carl Mørck, who is chosen to head up a cold case unit known as Department Q, after being the victim of a violent crime himself. In a 2017 interview with Crime Fiction Lover, writer Adler-Olsen said of his popular detective books, 'Before I wrote the first novel I wrote a synopsis of the entire series. I defined the main characters, although they have certainly developed during the writing process.' The author also admitted to basing Dept. Q's main character, Morck, on himself to some degree, including giving the detective his own real first name, Carl. 'One characteristic we share is a certain degree of laziness,' Adler-Olsen explained, while noting he envies Morck's ability to deliver 'plain truths directly to people.' With a 10-book series to draw upon, Netflix's adaptation has the potential to run for a very long time. Scott Frank, the creator of Dept. Q, is open to making future seasons of the gritty detective series, telling the BBC, 'I'd love to do more with this and the next book in the series is even more interesting and relevant.' Speaking to Collider, creator Frank revealed that the season 1 finale of Dept. Q ended in a very purposeful place, in the hopes of reuniting everyone for a second season. 'One of the points of the first season was to end it with everybody together,' Frank told the outlet. 'Everybody is in isolation at the beginning, living their own pathetic lives, and by the end, they're all in that shitty little basement together.' Referencing the second book in Adler-Olsen crime series, Frank told the publication, 'I've got a great idea for a second season. It is another cold case and also a current case, at the same time, that they're looking into. So, I would do that.' However, the creator also suggested viewers shouldn't necessarily expect another nine-episode season if the show returns for season 2. 'I might just do six next time,' Frank explained. 'We'll see. But I do know what I want to do next. I do have the story in mind for the next season.' While speaking with Collider, Goode suggested more time should be allotted to exploring the life of Akram Salim (Alexej Manvelov), a Syrian refugee and widowed father of two daughters who has a mysterious past and becomes a member of Dept. Q. 'I want to see what it's like back at Akram's house with his daughters,' Goode told the outlet. 'There's a lot of stuff to play around with. It's going to be really exciting if we do get to come back.' During his interview with Yahoo UK, Goode elaborated on his hopes for exploring Akram's impressive physical strength and impeccable skills as an investigator. 'We need to get Alexej into eight weeks of Krav Maga training so the fight scenes in season 2 can be amazing,' the actor enthused. 'It's going to be a sort of Syrian [Jason] Bourne.' For his part, Manvelov simply said, 'Hopefully we get to come back down.' It's also worth noting that, while the majority of crimes explored in Dept. Q's first season were resolved in the show's finale, it's still unclear who shot Carl and his colleague James Hardy, murdering a young police officer in the process. It's highly likely this unsolved mystery would continue into a second season. Throughout the first season of Dept. Q, Carl meets with therapist Dr. Rachel Irving (Kelly Macdonald), and the pair develop a flirty rapport. As for whether or not a relationship might develop between the pair in future seasons, Goode told Collider, 'Maybe there's a romantic entanglement. I have no idea. But sometimes I think people shouldn't be afraid to see a man and a woman navigate a friendship, rather than it necessarily needing to end up in bed. But I don't know. She's a brilliant actress. That's what I can say.' The show's creator Frank also addressed whether or not romance could play a part in the series if it's renewed, telling Collider, 'I could see Carl having a couple women in his life. Also, his ex-wife because there is enormous chemistry between the two of them as well, even though there's conflict. Watching the two of them in the room together, I thought, 'Oh, there's actually a hot chemistry here.'' This story will be updated.
The Herald Scotland
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
The warehouse powering Edinburgh's new era of screen success
But a new era of screen success for the city is now being propelled behind closed doors on the edge of the city's docklands – in a former wave power plant, which was originally built 25 years ago by an engineering company. Matthew Goode and Alexej Manvelov star in the new Edinburgh-set thriller Dept Q. (Image: Netflix) Launched by former record company film producer Bob Last and actor director Jason Connery, son of the Edinburgh-born screen legend Sean Connery, FirstStage is now said to be generating tens of millions of pounds for the economy every year and allowing the city to capitalise on the streaming platform boom. New Netflix series Dept. Q, which stars Leah Byrne, Matthew Goode and Alexej Manvelov, was shot at FirstStage Studios in Leith. (Image: Netflix - Department Q) The conversion of the vast blue warehouse complex into a long-awaited permanent film studio for the city got underway just as the global screen industry was being put into lockdown by the pandemic - and hosted its first major production as soon as Covid restrictions were lifted across the UK. Five years later, FirstStage Studios has played host to some of the biggest players in the lucrative world of 'streamers,' including Amazon, Netflix and Sony, and transformed Edinburgh's ability to play host to productions. Two seasons of the supernatural thriller series The Rig were shot at FirstStage Studios in Leith. (Image: FirstStage Studios) These include two seasons of the supernatural thriller The Rig, which were set in the North Sea and the Arctic Circle, the feature film The Outrun, for scenes set in London's nightclub scene and the time travel fantasy saga Outlander, for a final series expected to be set during the American Revolution. But its most recent production is being seen as another game-changer for the city's screen industry – with FirstStage used for the first time for a new nine-part thriller set in modern-day Edinburgh which is hoped to become a long-running series. The feature film The Outrun was partly shot at FirstStage Studios in Leith. (Image: Bob Last/FirstStage Studios) Locations across the Scottish capital were deployed for the latest Netflix thriller Dept. Q, which focuses on a new cold case unit set up in the heart of a police headquarters in the city. Although detective Carl Morck and his team appear to be based in the shadow of Edinburgh Castle, the inside of the atmospheric HQ and its grimy basement were created from scratch at FirstStage, along with other elaborate sets that feature in the show. A pit that can be used for underwater filming sequences is one of the key assets at FirstStage Studios in Leith. (Image: FirstStage Studios) The Downton Abbey and Crown actor Matthew Goode and a host of Scottish screen stars, including Shirley Henderson, Kate Dickie, Mark Bonnar, Jamie Sives and Leah Byrne, spent around six months making Dept. Q in Edinburgh – with around half of the film done inside the Leith studio. Eagle-eyed viewers may also be able to spot locations as varied as the City Chambers, the Signet Library, Greyfriars Bobby's Bar, Mortonhall Crematorium, Wester Hailes, the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena near Ratho and the Codebase building, on Castle Terrace, which stands in for the exterior of the police HQ. Launching the show in Edinburgh, writer-director Scott Frank, creator of the hit Netflix series the Queen's Gambit, described the extensive shoot on Dept. Q - which is based on Danish writer Jussi Adler-Olsen's novels - as 'the happiest experience' of his career. He said: 'You have great crews, you have great people and everything about shooting here is easy. 'The weather is interesting. It's the only place I've ever been where you can all four seasons in one day. 'The studio was wonderful. We had some pretty big sets and, partially because of the weather, we shot around half the show there. It was terrific. I loved working there.' Successive generations of Scottish screen industry leaders had lobbied for years for the country to create its own studio facilities. But the long-held dream did not become a reality until the Scottish Government and its screen agency agreed to help support Sony and Starz to find a home for its new show Outlander, which began filming in 2013 in a warehouse complex beside the M80 motorway in Cumbernauld. Four years later, the Leith Docks site, which was lying empty after a wave power company had gone into administration, was used for the first time by Marvel Studios while they spent around seven weeks shooting scenes for the blockbuster Avengers: Infinity War in the city's Old Town. Within months of the superhero being released, the Scottish Government and its Screen Scotland agency had launched a bid to create a permanent studio facility there, with Bob Last and Jason Connery announced as the successful team to take the project forward in March 2020. Bob Last said: 'When I was an independent film producer there was a lot of talk about studios, but I wouldn't have been able to afford to use one if it had been there on the budget of an independent film. 'There wasn't really enough demand for a studio until the streamers started making the level of content that they did. I saw that they were completely changing the way that people consumed content. 'When I was introduced to this building it was the first time that I felt there was a viable way of providing the scale that these huge shows needed. If we were going to attract shows to Scotland it was all going to be about competitive cost. "There used to be a lot of talk about building new studios from scratch in Scotland. But the cost of that would have meant that any such studio would have priced itself out of the market. 'We've been extremely busy since we opened pretty much on the first day of lockdown. We've had Amazon, Sony and Netlix shows in now, and have also been doing a rolling programme of work on the building, which has all sorts of unique and extraordinary elements. 'The pit that we use as a tank is one of the most interesting assets we have. If you were building a studio from scratch it would be insanely expensive to build, but it has turned out to be extremely useful. 'We also have 60 tonne and 20 tonne cranes, which have also been used by productions. You would never install them in a studio.' Chloe Pirrie is one of the stars of the new Netflix series Dept. Q, which is set in Edinburgh. (Image: free)The Scottish Government's film and TV agency Screen Scotland describes FirstStage Studios as a 'unique proposition' due to its size and facilities. The complex, which covers 8.9 acres, boasts 115,000 sq ft of shooting space up to 82 ft high, as well as offices, workshops and on-site parking for more than 200 vehicles. A spokesperson said: 'FirstStage has a number of key advantages. "It is one of very few UK-based studios to host a tank for underwater shooting, which has been used in productions including The Rig and The Outrun. 'Because of its height, FirstStage also has the capacity for very large set builds, and the large backlot as well as production offices and ancillary buildings on site. 'On its opening in 2020, once Covid restrictions were lifted it immediately became home to The Rig, Amazon's first UK drama commission. Created by Portobello-based writer David Macpherson, it perfectly highlighted the versatility and quality of the studio. An incredibly ambitious project, it was shot entirely in Scotland, and largely inside the FirstStage studio and surrounding lot. "Dept. Q from Netflix has built further on the potential first realised by The Rig and has again shown that FirstStage can deliver against the expectations and requirements of large-scale international productions.' Bob Last said: "If we knew the budgets of our customers we wouldn't be able to talk about them. "When a big show comes in here they will spend a lot of money in the city. We can have 200 people working here at the same time. "We are certainly anchoring tens of millions of pounds in direct spending ever year." Rosie Ellison, film commissioner at Film Edinburgh, the city's long-running film office, highlighted the transformation of the screen industry since the advent of the Leith studio. 'Edinburgh used to pick up a couple of days of or maybe a week or two of filming on productions. 'A production based at FirstStage might be here for a full six months of filming, plus another two or three months of preparation, plus another month or so winding down the production. 'The economic impact of a production and the opportunities it creates are very different to what they were before we had the studio. Productions are spending a lot when they are here, they are hiring local services and creating jobs for our young people to get involved in the industry. 'Dept Q was based at FirstStage, but they were also out and about every month, making use of our urban, rural and coastal locations, different kinds of architecture and office spaces. All sorts of landscapes will appear in that show, including places that people have never been seen on screen before." FirstStage Studios in Leith has been up and running for more than five years. (Image: FirstStage Studios)Hugh Gourlay, supervising location manager on Dept. Q said: "We filmed in something like 13 of the city's 17 council wards. 'There's such a variance in the architecture in Edinburgh: you've got the New Town, the medieval parts, the narrow closes, the wide streets, and the high-rise flats of parts of the city." For Bob Last, the city itself is a major selling point to help attract big-budget productions to FirstStage. 'Ware now on that global map because of the shows that have been here. When people are sitting in LA going down a list of studios we are on that list. That's where we need to be. "For us, Edinburgh as a city for someone to come and live and work in for six months is a massively important asset. There are five stars hotels near the studio and Michelin-starred restaurants literally walking distance away. 'These kind of shows are bringing people in from a global talent pool. If you're going to live and work somewhere for six months Edinburgh is a pretty cool place to do that.' Speaking at the Dept Q premiere in Edinburgh, showrunner Scott Frank said: 'When I came to Edinburgh I immediately knew we had to shoot here. I felt instantly inspired. 'It made me want to work even more in terms of the story to make it work more for Edinburgh. It was a really easy decision to film here. 'I loved living here and it was very easy to work here. I found Edinburgh very inspiring. 'I would love to come back. We'd all love to come back. We really enjoyed ourselves and I think we all got very close. I think we have a really good way of doing the second season. I hope people watch the show and we get to do it again.'
Sydney Morning Herald
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Gripping Netflix thriller is the best police mystery since Mare of Easttown
Dept. Q ★★★★½ You could make a list of the building blocks in this Edinburgh-set crime thriller and they'd be readily familiar to fans of the genre. Tick off a gifted but arrogant detective, their disaffected child, a new partner who carries a heavy burden, and a case that offers few clues. But without fail this enthralling drama, which becomes an unstoppable procedural driven by resuscitation and redemption, transcends the recognisable. Every element is finely honed, making Dept. Q the best law enforcement mystery since Mare of Easttown. It's a triumph of craft, capably assembled. That begins with creator Scott Frank, who co-wrote and lead-directed this adaptation of Jussi Adler-Olsen's series of Danish crime novels. Frank, whose previous Netflix series include The Queen's Gambit and Godless, moves the story to Scotland, but his protagonist is unyielding. Carl Morck (Matthew Goode) is a demanding police detective, dismissive of those who can't dissect a crime scene. His colleagues are in a race to tell Morck to eff off, with many achieving personal bests. Returning to work after a failed routine operation hospitalised his partner, Hardy (Jamie Sives), Morck is a fuse waiting to be lit, so his boss, Moira Jacobson (Kate Dickie), sends him to the basement as the head – and sole member – of a new cold case squad. Here's another tick: Morck has mandated sessions with psychologist Dr Rachel Irving (Kelly Macdonald). But they're both revealing and bleakly funny – Morck is never a misanthrope for the sake of it, and Frank keeps finding new foils for him. The dialogue bristles with subtext and swipes. Goode's an exceptional actor who's never had a defining role. Until now. He gives Morck's struggles with self-loathing and selflessness a roiling depth. In a show where confinement – physically and emotionally – is a recurring theme, Morck's trajectory is never simply upwards. His doubts about himself are reflected in a hard-charging prosecutor with a complex past, Merrit Lingard (Chloe Pirrie), but Morck's professional drive is equally a magnet for outsiders. The first is his assistant, Akram Salim (Alexej Manvelov), a Syrian refugee with a complicated CV. Loading It helps immeasurably that the case they settle on is a genuine puzzle, and the story unfolds it patiently with false starts and authentic legwork. Nothing comes easily on Dept. Q, and that makes each step a small triumph. There's a hint of Slow Horses in the maladjusted and misfits finding purpose in the basement, but the idiomatic sarcasm is more of a defence mechanism in Edinburgh. It's a show about the fine line between someone staying afloat or sinking without trace. The margins always matter in this gripping tale.
The Age
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
Gripping Netflix thriller is the best police mystery since Mare of Easttown
Dept. Q ★★★★½ You could make a list of the building blocks in this Edinburgh-set crime thriller and they'd be readily familiar to fans of the genre. Tick off a gifted but arrogant detective, their disaffected child, a new partner who carries a heavy burden, and a case that offers few clues. But without fail this enthralling drama, which becomes an unstoppable procedural driven by resuscitation and redemption, transcends the recognisable. Every element is finely honed, making Dept. Q the best law enforcement mystery since Mare of Easttown. It's a triumph of craft, capably assembled. That begins with creator Scott Frank, who co-wrote and lead-directed this adaptation of Jussi Adler-Olsen's series of Danish crime novels. Frank, whose previous Netflix series include The Queen's Gambit and Godless, moves the story to Scotland, but his protagonist is unyielding. Carl Morck (Matthew Goode) is a demanding police detective, dismissive of those who can't dissect a crime scene. His colleagues are in a race to tell Morck to eff off, with many achieving personal bests. Returning to work after a failed routine operation hospitalised his partner, Hardy (Jamie Sives), Morck is a fuse waiting to be lit, so his boss, Moira Jacobson (Kate Dickie), sends him to the basement as the head – and sole member – of a new cold case squad. Here's another tick: Morck has mandated sessions with psychologist Dr Rachel Irving (Kelly Macdonald). But they're both revealing and bleakly funny – Morck is never a misanthrope for the sake of it, and Frank keeps finding new foils for him. The dialogue bristles with subtext and swipes. Goode's an exceptional actor who's never had a defining role. Until now. He gives Morck's struggles with self-loathing and selflessness a roiling depth. In a show where confinement – physically and emotionally – is a recurring theme, Morck's trajectory is never simply upwards. His doubts about himself are reflected in a hard-charging prosecutor with a complex past, Merrit Lingard (Chloe Pirrie), but Morck's professional drive is equally a magnet for outsiders. The first is his assistant, Akram Salim (Alexej Manvelov), a Syrian refugee with a complicated CV. Loading It helps immeasurably that the case they settle on is a genuine puzzle, and the story unfolds it patiently with false starts and authentic legwork. Nothing comes easily on Dept. Q, and that makes each step a small triumph. There's a hint of Slow Horses in the maladjusted and misfits finding purpose in the basement, but the idiomatic sarcasm is more of a defence mechanism in Edinburgh. It's a show about the fine line between someone staying afloat or sinking without trace. The margins always matter in this gripping tale.
Edinburgh Live
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Live
Netflix unveils trailer for new Edinburgh crime thriller based on popular novel series
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Netflix has unveiled the first trailer for an Edinburgh-set police drama, Dept Q. The series which is set to premiere on May 29, saw streets across the capital be taken over by crews as filming got underway Starring Line of Duty's Kelly Macdonald and Downton Abbey's Matthew Goode, the series follows a detective leading a cold case unit in Edinburgh. Based on the novels by Jussi Adler-Olsen, the show also stars Chloe Pirrie, Jamie Sives, Leah Byrne, Mark Bonnar, Kate Dickie, Alexej Manvelov, Shirley Henderson and Tom Bulpett. The two-minute teaser introduces Goode's DCI Carl Morck as he speaks to Macdonald's therapist Dr Rachel Irving about the incident. The investigation trail leads them to look into the officers themselves. (Image: Netflix) Over the course of 2024, residential and city centre areas were taken over for the crime drama series. Calder Crescent was closed for locals from 8am to 5pm on February 6 2024 while scenes were shot. Then in march 2024, Melville Street was partially closed as film crews got to work. (Image: Edinburgh Live) Locals were previously informed: "We are writing to you on behalf of LBM Dept Q Ltd to inform you of our plans to film scenes for a chilling new detective series being made for one of the large streaming channels in and around Edinburgh." The Netflix description reads: "A brash but brilliant cop becomes head of a new police department, where he leads an unlikely team of misfits in solving Edinburgh's cold cases." Sign up for Edinburgh Live newsletters for more headlines straight to your inbox Director Scott Frank previously said: "The fact that I have been a fan of Jussi's novels for a dozen years now combined with my long-standing obsession with old school British procedurals like Cracker and Prime Suspect, made this one irresistible. Join Edinburgh Live's Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sentstraight to your messages. "There are ten novels in all, each one is a terrific mystery with great potential for a great season of television. And Carl Mørck is one of those classic detective antiheroes, funny and dark at the same time, that I can never get enough of. I think audiences will feel the same way.' You can watch the full trailer here.
