Netflix’s Dept. Q Season 2 Is Set To Go Even Darker — New Cast Revealed As Edinburgh’s Misfit Detectives Take On A Crime Hidden Among Scotland’s Elite

Netflix is giving Dept. Q another case to crack.

The darkly comic crime drama has officially been renewed for a second season following the strong global response to its debut. Based on Jussi Adler-Olsen’s bestselling novels, the series quickly established its own identity by combining Edinburgh’s atmospheric setting with complex characters, cold cases and unsettling mysteries.

Season one spent six weeks in Netflix’s Global Top 10 charts, helping turn the story of a group of overlooked investigators into an international hit.

Now the basement-dwelling detectives are heading back into the shadows — and their next case could be their most dangerous yet.

Scott Frank Returns For Season 2

Writer-director Scott Frank, who transformed Adler-Olsen’s Danish detective stories into a distinctly Scottish noir, will return for the second season.

His adaptation has been praised for balancing dark humour with psychological tension while making Edinburgh an important part of the show’s identity.

“I’m grateful to the folks at Netflix, as well as our shining cast and crew, for once more risking their careers to enable my folly,” Frank said in an official statement.

Matthew Goode will once again lead the series as DCI Carl Morck, the brilliant but deeply flawed detective placed in charge of a team tasked with investigating Scotland’s coldest cases.

Alexej Manvelov will return as Akram, alongside Leah Byrne as Rose and Jamie Sives as Hardy.

Together, the unlikely quartet became one of the most memorable elements of the first season, despite spending much of their time working from the police force’s basement.

But this time, they will have plenty of new faces around them.

Netflix has announced a substantial group of additions to the season two cast, including Aisling Franciosi as Kimmie, Greg Wise as Derek Powell, Nicholas Rowe as Thomas Fulton and Tony Curran as Winnie Calderwood.

Hamish Clark will play Christopher Herron, Alex Ferns will appear as Phil Allenbeck, Ross Anderson as Ricky Daddario, Rebecca Root as June Lovesay and Isla Johnston as Agnes.

The details surrounding their characters are being kept largely under wraps.

A New Case At The Top Of Scottish Society

What Netflix has revealed about the new story already suggests a major escalation.

Executive producer Rob Bullock said season two will follow Carl and his team as they investigate “a terrible crime hidden in the highest echelons of Scottish society.”

The central idea is one that feels particularly suited to Dept. Q: powerful people who believe their wealth and influence place them beyond the reach of the law.

Carl, naturally, does not share that belief.

Another executive producer, Manda Levin, has described the new season as “darkly delicious,” teasing that Carl and his team will have a difficult time identifying those responsible.

The Absent One Could Shape The New Story

Scott Frank had previously confirmed plans to adapt Jussi Adler-Olsen’s second novel, The Absent One.

That story revolves around the brutal double murder of a brother and sister two decades earlier. Although someone is already serving time for the crime, Carl suspects that the official story may not explain everything.

Frank has described the case as involving both an old investigation and a current one, suggesting that the dual-timeline approach used in season one could return.

That could give the detectives another mystery that stretches across decades while forcing them to uncover what really happened.

Carl And Akram Could Get More Personal

The second season may also spend more time away from the investigation.

Matthew Goode has expressed interest in exploring Carl’s home life, including his complicated relationship with his stepson and lodger.

Perhaps even more intriguing is the possibility of finally learning more about Akram.

Both Goode and Alexej Manvelov have hinted that the character’s mysterious history could receive greater attention. Goode has expressed a desire to see more of Akram’s life with his daughters, while Manvelov has described the character as layered and deeply human.

Season one intentionally left major questions surrounding Akram unanswered, including details about his former profession in Syria and the circumstances surrounding his wife’s death.

That unresolved history could become one of the most intriguing threads of season two.

For now, Netflix is keeping many details hidden. But with Carl Morck and his unconventional team returning, a new group of suspects entering the story and a crime reaching into Scotland’s most powerful circles, Dept. Q appears ready to make its second case even darker than the first.