BBC recommissions Rebus for second series
The BBC has ordered a second series of the hit crime drama Rebus.
Rebus has been recommissioned for a second series.
Series one of the six-part BBC crime drama - which is based on Ian Rankin's books about DS John Rebus - was a huge hit on release last year and, after its cliffhanger ending, it has now been confirmed Richard Rankin will be back as the detective for another series.
The second season will follow DS Rebus as he "explores the links between violent criminals in the city’s drug trade and the bourgeois world of law and finance".
Filming is scheduled for later this year before it airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in 2026.
Ian Rankin, who serves as executive producer on Rebus, said: “Season one of Rebus ended on a cliffhanger. Only screenwriter Gregory Burke knows what happens next.
“So I’m hugely excited that season two will soon be with us. Rebus is back - mean, moody and as magnificent as ever.”
Writer Gregory Burke is "delighted" to be penning a new series.
He said in a statement: "I’m delighted to be given the chance by the BBC and Eleventh Hour Films to bring Rebus back to the nation’s TV screens once more. Ian Rankin’s character and body of work are the perfect materials with which to explore contemporary Scottish society and the turbulent world that surrounds it."
BBC bosses admitted they were "blown away" by the response to the first series.
Louise Thornton, Head of Commissioning for BBC Scotland, said: “We were blown away with the audience response to the new-look Rebus first time round so bringing it back for a second series was always a priority. The combination of brilliant storytelling, powerful performances and top class production values will make this new series must-see television.
"This commission is part of our recently announced strategy to bring more high impact scripted content from Scotland and we’re confident audiences will enjoy this next series as much as they did the first.”
Richard - who is not related to 65-year-old author Ian - previously praised the writing for the show.
The 42-year-old actor told RadioTimes.com in 2024: "The source material is so well-written, so wonderfully written by Ian Rankin.
"And then we've got the screenwriting, and it is so, so good from Greg Burke, I think he's an excellent writer, and I think his take on it is exciting. I think that we have such a rich world to draw from, and Greg's from that world himself.
"He's coming to it with such experience, such honesty, such a story to tell, and he understands this world as a character, the political and social landscape of it all, he writes it, puts it in there, and gives it to us to take and put it on screen.
"I feel very lucky to have had that. Those scripts and the source material that it came from, because it just really enriches it all and fills it with something substantial on screen."
