Netflix police thriller Blood Coast has seemingly been renewed for Season 2, at least according to the French media. However, Netflix have not yet released an official decision about the show’s future.
Created by Kamel Guemra, is a gripping French crime drama series that features Captain Lyès Benamar, a police officer on the verge of becoming corrupt, and his squad, as they traverse the brutal underworld of Marseille. The six-episode series is as violent and gritty as you might expect, with plenty of shootouts and police brutality on show. It also explores the motivations of the cast, with varying degrees of success, but if you enjoy this kind of thing, you should find plenty here to like. The question is, though, will you get to see more of it? Has Blood Coast been renewed for Season 2? Here’s the latest.
Latest: French Media Reports A Second Season
The French entertainment site Allocine reported last week that Season 2 was apparently a go, based on comments from Olivier Marchal. Respected Netflix news outlet What’s On Netflix translated the statement into English and investigated the claim with contacts at Netflix. The statement reads:
“In the C media show on Sunday March 3, 2024 on France 5, Olivier Marchal announced that the series would indeed return for a second year of adventures! The impressive number of views recorded by Netflix across the globe probably encouraged the platform to renew the series…”
WON received a response from Netflix that reiterated their official position. At the time of writing (March 14, 2024), Blood Coast has not officially been renewed. However, based on the rumours, that could change sooner rather than later.
Has Netflix renewed Blood Coast Season 2?
At the time of writing, Netflix has not released any official confirmation about a second season of Blood Coast. However, it is still early for the platform to make that decision, as they need to take a look at all the factors that surround the first series before green-lighting a second run.
Streaming platforms look very carefully at the number of people who watch the series, as well as the numbers that start a show but don’t finish it. Unfortunately, streaming giants still do not like to reveal ratings in the way that mainstream television channels do, making it hard to second guess if a show will be renewed.
However, the show ended rather ambiguously, and since there’s always an appetite for international productions in popular genres, we probably shouldn’t write Blood Coast Season 2 off until we have concrete information proving otherwise.
How did Season 1 end?
Note: For the full rundown, our comprehensive ending explained article is a useful resource.
By the end of the first six-episode run, there was some closure, but also some loose ends. Antagonist Franck Murillo was arrested by Vidal for his catalog of offenses, finally giving her some closure in regards to the death of her father. In resisting her desire for revenge, she took claimed the moral high ground and figured she could move on with her life — with Lyes.
The bad news is that the authorities have to let Ali Saïdi, the leader of Marseille’s underworld, go, to maintain some kind of peace and safety in the streets of the city. However, Miranda is offered Lyes on a plate for his various corrupt activities, and the season ends with he and the some officers arriving to take Lyes into custody.
It does look as if the writer still has some room to further explore this world, and the ending does tentatively suggest that they may be hoping for news of a renewal.
How have critics and audiences responded?
There have been some mixed reviews of the show so far. Our very own review on the site only managed to award two out of five stars, saying:
Blood Coast is, to be charitable, an easy binge-watch, and it’s never boring, though it isn’t particularly interesting either. This is the kind of show that genre fans will gobble down without much fuss and promptly forget about; it’s enjoyable in the moment without leaving any lasting impressions. One might argue this is enough, and for many perhaps it will be. But those expecting something more than the bare minimum will likely leave disappointed.
Decider urges you to Skip It, due to the generic approach the show has to the subject matter. Heaven of Horror almost agrees, saying the show is “entertaining, but not great”.
Flickonclick are much more positive about the show though, and they say the series “is a must-watch for fans of the genre, providing a fresh perspective on law enforcement’s battle against crime and corruption in one of France’s most iconic cities.”
A user on X, formerly Twitter, at least offered a succinct hope for a renewal:
I hope we have a second season. #BloodCoast
— trikkie1 (@trikkie1) December 8, 2023
As well as writing Blood Coast, Kamel Guemra has also been behind some other gritty projects. He was involved in the dialogue and scripting duties on the crime thriller Lost Bullet in 2020, which followed a small-time delinquent who finds himself a mechanic for a go-fast police task force and is forced to defend his innocence when his mentor is killed by dirty cops.
His other TV work includes the shows Defendant and Carrement Craignos.
