Rian Johnson’s Poker Face is dead — and we know who did it. It was Peacock, in the board room, with the axe. But, as is the case in any good cosy crime series, there may be a twist in the tale yet. You see, while Deadline‘s reporting that Johnson’s throwback murder-mystery show hasn’t scored a Season 3 renewal may come as a bit of a shock to fans of the Columbo-esque ‘whydunit’, Poker Face may not be quite so dead as it seems. In fact, a new iteration of the show, complete with a new Charlie Cale, could be on its way sooner than you think… if Rian Johnson has his way.
According to Deadline, while Peacock’s folding on producing a third season of Poker Face is set to see Natasha Lyonne vacate her starring role as human lie-detector Charlie Cale, Johnson remains keen for more Charlie Cale mysteries. In fact, he and Lyonne (who remains executive producer on the series) are already hitting the town in search of a two-season commitment for Poker Face to continue, albeit with a major twist: the duo want Peter Dinklage to become the next Charlie! And not only that, but should the show keep going beyond a further two seasons, Lyonne and Johnson would actually want to take a Doctor Who-meets-True Detective style approach to Poker Face, bringing in a new Charlie Cale every couple of years while holding true to the show’s world and format.
In a joint statement confirming their intentions, Johnson and Lyonne told Deadline the following: “We’ve been germinating this next move together since writing the season two finale. We love our Poker Face and this is the perfect way to keep it rolling. Give us a beat and we may just see Charlie Cale again down that open highway.”
Despite Poker Face Season 2 raking in streamer-best viewing figures, drawing in big-name guest stars (Cynthia Erivo, Melanie Lynskey, Kumail Nanjiani, Giancarlo Esposito, and more) and garnering widespread praise among critics and fans, it seems that the series’ hefty production costs and aggregated ratings dips might have contributed to Peacock’s decision to pull the plug. But where there’s a will — and a Rian Johnson and Natasha Lyonne — there’s a way, and we very much hope the duo’s high stakes play for Poker Face‘s future pays out. Until then, we can at least console ourselves with another Rian Johnson sleuthing sequel very soon: Wake Up Dead Man hits select cinemas on 26 November and Netflix on 12 December.
