The Night Agent season 2 is on the way – and I'm not surprised

Netflix has officially confirmed that The Night Agent season 2 is in the works.

In the least surprising news of the week, the world's best streaming service has renewed its latest smash-hit show for another season. The announcement was made in a Netflix press release, before being revealed publicly on the company's various social media channels.

The Night Agent's renewal comes one week after the spy thriller series debuted on the platform, and one day after Netflix revealed how it had taken the streaming world by storm. As we reported yesterday (March 29), The Night Agent has become Netflix's new TV show darling, with the Shawn Ryan-created series posting an impressive 168.7 million hours viewed in its first six days on Netflix.

Those viewing figures catapulted it to the number one spot on Netflix's Top 10 TV chart, and saw the series debut in the Top 10 most popular shows in 93 countries. A second season announcement, then, was a case of when, not if.

Like its predecessor, The Night Agent season 2 will consist of 10 episodes. And, given that Netflix will want to capitalize on its popularity as soon as possible, the streamer has announced the show's next installment will land on its service sometime in 2024.

For the uninitiated, The Night Agent, which is based on Matthew Quirk's novel of the same name, stars Gabriel Basso as Peter Sutherland, a low-level FBI agent who works in the basement of the White House. Sutherland is tasked with manning a phone that never rings – until, one night, it surprisingly does. Cue Sutherland becoming embroiled in a vast conspiracy as he races to stop a traitor whose stolen intel threatens the peace and security of the entire US.

Speaking after the show's second season was greenlit, Ryan said: "The last week has been a whirlwind as we've finally been able to share The Night Agent with the world. To see the tremendous reaction to the show has been a great joy, and is a credit to our cast, our writers, our directors, our crew, and our partners at Sony Pictures Television and Netflix. We couldn't be any prouder or more excited to get cracking on season 2 to share the further adventures of Night Action with our newfound fans."

A no-brainer of a renewal

So, why has The Night Agent been renewed for a second season? After all, 2023's most popular Netflix series – Ginny and Georgia, whose second season posted a massive 180.4 million hours streamed in its first week – is yet to receive the green light for a third installment. It all boils down to another simple metric: how much The Night Agent cost to make.

Netflix hasn't confirmed how much money it pumped into The Night Agent season 1. However, it's likely that the series' production costs were on the low side, relatively speaking. Equally, its marketing costs will have been modest compared to heavy hitters like Shadow and Bone season 2 or You season 4 – two other fan-favorite shows that haven't come close to matching The Night Agent's impressive opening week viewership. 

Add in the fact that The Night Agent's cast isn't made of up A-list actors, and Netflix will have been able to keep costs down even more. Hong Chau, who recently starred in 2023 Oscar Best Picture nominee The Whale and hit Peacock show Poker Face, is arguably the most recognizable name among its cast. No one else, Basso included, has featured in a major Hollywood movie or instantly identifiable TV show.

Netflix's decision to greenlight The Night Agent season 2, then, is a no-brainer. It's the second most-watched Netflix show of 2023, is financially viable, and taps into Netflix's audience demand for compelling, absorbing, and shocking action espionage thrillers. Netflix would have been silly not to renew it for another mission, then. Expect The Night Agent to make its way onto our best Netflix shows list very soon.

For more Netflix-based coverage, read our Shadow and Bone season 2 review. Additionally, read up on why Netflix and its streaming rivals could be restricted in the UK if any of them break new government laws that are set to come into effect soon. Finally, check out these seven spy thriller shows while we wait for The Night Agent season 2 to arrive.