'Darby & Joan' Return for Season 2 Just Before New Year's

Acorn TV is prepping more cozy crime shows to keep viewers warm for 2025. Darby & Joan, the Australian-set odd couple series that premiered in 2022, starring British actor Greta Scacchi (Emma) as Joan Kirkhope and Australian Bryan Brown (Caught) as Jack Darby, is back for another set of adventures, as Season 2 debuts just before New Year's Day 2025. The new season was only just announced at the end of June 2024 as filming in the Outback commenced, so Americans shouldn't blame themselves for not noticing. Hopefully, the return of the show with six new episodes will not be similarly overlooked.

Season 1 initially began with Joan Kirkhope, a widowed nurse from the U.K., arriving in Australia on a quest to find answers about her husband's mysterious death. The clues lead her right to ex-detective Jack Darby, who has retired to the open road. Together, the two wind up on a road trip for the ages, solving the mysteries in the towns they're passing through on their way to Joan's ultimate answer. However, by the time they reach the finale, the unlikely investigative duo realizes that the most intriguing puzzle in their lives has become each other.

Season 2 will turn the tables, this time putting Jack on the path to solving one of the biggest mysteries of his life while providing weekly adventures as the two drive from town to town. However, can the series keep these two on the road forever, or will one of them finally put down roots?

Here's the Season 2 synopsis:

A year after their lives collided on an outback road, retired Australian detective Jack Darby and English widow Joan Kirkhope have forged a deep friendship amid shared investigative adventures. But Jack’s story has only just begun – he’s determined to clear his name of the unexplained cloud hanging over his career. Despite the potential danger – or perhaps because of it – Joan insists on helping Jack with his quest. Can they uncover the truth after all these years? Or will their search for answers only unearth more questions? As they travel through Queensland’s picturesque landscapes, solving mysteries, Jack and Joan’s relationship will be tested. An escapist adventure where a new mystery awaits around every bend in the road, Darby and Joan ask: can you find yourself in the middle of nowhere?

Brown and Scacchi once again co-star with Anna McGahan as Rebecca Kirkhope, Joan's daughter. The rest of the cast is comprised of weekly guest stars as Darby & Joan roll into town after town, solving crimes. 

Glenys Rowe and Phillip Gwynne created the series, which is produced by CJZ Production. Matt Campbell, Claire Tonkin, Catherine Mackin, and Bea Tammer are executive producers.

Darby & Joan Season 2 premieres with two episodes on Monday, December 30, 2024, with one episode a week to follow on Mondays through January 2025.