‘Luther’ finale: Neil Cross teases the future and an Alice Morgan spinoff series

[Canada]

Source Indie Wire

[Editor’s note: The following post contains major spoilers for all five seasons of “Luther.“]

For fans of BBC America’s “Luther,” after waiting five long years for the fifth season, it might feel somewhat anticlimactic that it all ends in just four roughly hourlong episodes. And after the finale airs on Sunday, June 23, a question that will likely linger long after is: What happens next – if anything – for DCI John Luther and his band of “merrymakers,” especially fan favorite villain Alice Morgan, portrayed by Ruth Wilson? The creator of the series, Neil Cross, has some thoughts – and fans can be assured that this is absolutely not the end.

“Both Idris and I, and the broader team, are very keen to continue telling Luther’s stories,” Cross said in an interview with IndieWire. “There is absolutely no suggestion that we have finished with the character. It’s just a question of what format those future stories might take.”

Hinting at the possibility of what he called “a whole new ‘Luther’ multimedia extravaganza,” Cross was reticent about giving concrete details on any plans that might be in discussion. What he did tease were more along the lines of his own desires for how he’d like to engage with the characters, and not necessarily anything that’s definitely in the works. For example, he said that he would love to see an animated version of “Luther.”

And on a question that has dogged the series (as well as its creator and star) since its first season – whether “Luther” will eventually make it to the big screen – Cross was expectedly cryptic. Recalling that Elba has talked about the possibility on several prior occasions, Cross said, “I’m as confident as Idris is, that ‘Luther’ would make a great movie. And that’s as broad a lead as I can give you on that subject.”

Despite years of rumors and fan theories, Elba has already dismissed the idea that he will be the next James Bond. “Luther is my Bond,” the actor said during a live 2015 BBC America conversation in New York City. Given what both he and Cross have said (and haven’t), it should be clear that a “Luther” movie – and possibly a movie franchise like Bond – is something that they want and are very likely pursuing.

Season 5 sees the return of Alice Morgan, the maniacal Moriarty to Luther’s Holmes. For Cross, it was inevitable that she returned. “We thought that it was time to reevaluate Luther’s relationship with Alice, because it’s certainly a key relationship in what we’re calling this first stage of ‘Luther’,” he said. “Theirs was a story that wasn’t quite finished, and whose conclusion we were all keen to see. Idris and I felt that it was a relationship that needed to be resolved.”

The question then, given how Season 5 ends, has Alice Morgan indeed moved on to the next life? “Well, I would hesitate to ever say that Alice Morgan is dead,” Cross said. “The Luther universe could probably never exist without her.”

And that expanded “Luther” universe could very well include a standalone Alice Morgan series, which Cross said they’ve all discussed quite a lot. “It’s so ****ing difficult being flirtatious with this stuff and not being definitive,” he said. “But as we look at continuing the ‘Luther’ universe, we’re certainly talking about the futures of all the characters, is all I can say. One of the curses of my life is that I wake up every morning with ‘Luther’ on my mind. I’m always thinking of where we could take things, because there will always be new places for these characters to go, and that’s exciting.”

The Season 5 finale of “Luther” airs on June 23, on BBC America.