'Luther: The Fallen Sun' Trailer Places the DCI at His Breaking Point

It is said that success can go to the head of actors and celebrities and that they forget where they come from. However, Idris Elba not only keeps it real, one might argue that he has trouble letting go. Luther, the show which put him on the map, ran its course years ago, debuting in 2010 and reaching its first natural endpoint in 2014 with Season 3. And yet, along with writer Neil Cross, Elba keeps returning to it. Thus far, the two-part Season 4 and the far better Season 5 have managed to garner audiences. But the actual test of the fandom comes now, with the feature film`` Luther: The Fallen Sun, which Netflix will debut on the big screen weeks ahead of its streaming arrival.

When the movie was confirmed in 2021, Elba insisted the fandom wanted it (as did he), and that's why the character was back for another round. But Netflix's agreement to put the film in theaters will be an exciting experiment to see if Elba's claims of the diehard fandom are as widespread as he thinks. For those of us dedicated to the checkered coat and red tie, the expanded budget, and the high-profile cast, means this will be a fun return to the world of Luther. However, this will be the first time since the ill-fated Season 4 that the show has attempted to tell a successful story without Ruth Wilson's Alice Morgan, so it remains to be seen if it will work.

With the first trailer out, it's easy to see that Cross has stacked the deck with guest stars Andy Serkis and Cynthia Ervio. Still best known as Gollum, Serkis, who plays criminal billionaire David Robey, has the same manic energy Wilson always brought to Morgan, even if the sexual tension is no longer a factor. Ervio plays DCI Odette Raine, the detective who took his role after Luther's arrest and is determined to bring him down the same way he was once single-mindedly obsessed with taking out Morgan. It puts a nice twist on the proceedings.

And, of course, there's the longtime chemistry between Elba and Dermot Crowley. He plays DSU Martin Schenk, Luther's former boss. He's also the only cast member left from the original series, and their bizarre camaraderie adds an interesting dimension between cat and mouse.

Here's the film's logline:

In Luther: The Fallen Sun — an epic continuation of the award-winning television saga reimagined for film —  a gruesome serial killer is terrorizing London while brilliant but disgraced detective John Luther sits behind bars. Haunted by his failure to capture the cyber psychopath who now taunts him, Luther decides to break out of prison to finish the job by any means necessary.

Until the trailer's release, the only announced cast besides Elba was Erivo, Serkis, and Crowley. Though the official cast list remains those four, the trailer reveals a couple more new faces. Hattie Morahan (Enola Holmes) plays Corinne Aldrich, one of Robey's victims, who Luther is fighting for to see justice.

The film also co-stars Thomas Coombes (The Murders At White House Farm) as Archie Woodward, who looks to be the new DS caught up in the mess, Vincent Regan (Poldark) as Dennis McCabe, and Lauryn Ajufo (The Last Bus) as Anya Raine, Odette's teenage daughter.

Luther: The Fallen Sun will debut in theaters on Friday, February 24, and begin streaming on Netflix two weeks later, Friday, March 10, 2023.