Second Seasons of 'Before We Die' & 'Astrid' Coming to PBS Passport in April

PBS Passport is once again bringing members shows before they stream on linear. Season 1 of the British remake of Walter's Choice fan-favorite Before We Die (Innan vi Dör) debuted on most linear PBS stations in March 2022 alongside Call The Midwife and Sanditon Season 2. For 2023, PBS Passport is getting all five episodes of Before We Die Season 2 first, in April, ahead of the new season's planned summer debut on most PBS stations.

It's also bringing the new season of Walter's Choice's favorite Franco-Belgian mystery, Astrid (Astrid et Raphaëlle), with all eight episodes streaming this April before the series becomes the newest foreign language series to air on linear come the 2023-2024 TV season.

Until 2022, PBS Passport was okay with being a secondary space for PBS shows. It was the streaming service that came with a donation to your local station, the digital addition to the standard mug-and-tote-bag swag for being a member; its extra benefits were limited to bonus series from the foreign language favorite Walter's Choice. However, even public television is not immune to the changing entertainment landscape, cord-cutting, or the move by viewers to streaming services. In the spring of 2022, most PBS Passport stations began getting Call The Midwife episodes a month before they aired, while Masterpiece premiered Annika Season 1 six months ahead of its linear debut that October.

However, with Miss Scarlet and the Duke Season 3 getting an early PBS Passport release in November 2022 and new Walter's Choice shows arriving in waves around the same time, PBS Passport is getting more aggressive in the kinds of titles it provides as a benefit to members. In February 2023, the new mystery series DI Ray premiering in July on most PBS stations, debuted with all six episodes on PBS Passport. And now both Before We Die Season  2 and Astrid Season 2 are getting early releases for PBS Passport members in April.

Season 1 of the English language version of Before We Die closely followed the same plot as Innan vi Dör Season 1, with Lesley Sharpe playing the same role as Swedish actor Marie Richardson and a mystery that followed the same beats closely. Season 2, however, will deviate from the original series; here's the synopsis:

Before We Die picks up three months later, with DI Hannah Laing spending the past three months trying to find the mole she believes is in her department while simultaneously trying to take down the Mimica crime family, led by matriarch Dubravka Mimica. Only that way can she guarantee the safety of her son Christian, who’s currently on the run with Dubravka’s daughter Bianca. 

Astrid, on the other hand, is not a remake; it's just more of the popular Franco-Belgian series, which has been airing on France 2 since 2019, with Season 4 airing in Europe in September 2022. (Season 5 has yet to be confirmed, but French productions rarely are until much closer to their air date.) The series has been a sleeper hit in the states since Season 1 arrived on PBS Passport in November 2022. Here's the Season 2 synopsis, which notably includes Raphaëlle as part of the main cast, despite dropping her from the series' title:

The crime fighting duo are back for more ethereal adventures involving aliens, witchcraft, and mythical beasts. Can Astrid solve these mystic murders? 

Before We Die Season 1 is streaming on PBS Passport; all five episodes of Season 2 arrive on Monday, April 10, 2023, and will premiere on most PBS stations in mid-to-late summer. Astrid Season 1 is also streaming on PBS Passport; all eight episodes of Season 2 arrive on Thursday, April 20, 2023, and will premiere on most PBS stations as part of the 2023-2024 TV season in the fall.