Will There Be A 'Van Der Valk' Season 2? The Show Will Eventually Return

Van Der Valk continues its popularity streak. The original series aired in the 1970s and was revived in the 1990s to huge audiences. The new reboot arrived to overwhelmingly positive reviews in the U.K. and the States. Fans are also loving the show on Twitter. But with only three installments this year, and a bit of a cliffhanger ending, fans wonder if the show is worth the commitment, or if it will go the way of Sanditon.

For those worried that the last they'll see of Marc Warren's Piet Van Der Valk is him broodily staring into the water, remembering the death of his wife, Arlette, don't worry. ITV liked what they saw of audience ratings in the U.K. back when the show aired in April of this year. Some shows don't get the green light for another season until the show has aired over here. (Think Grantchester or Unforgotten.) This way, ITV feels confident the combined audiences are enough to keep going. But Van Der Valk wasn't one of them. ITV announced Season 2 was a go by May's finale episode.

Season 2 will once again consist of three feature-length installments. The new season will bring back the full ensemble cast that rounded out the first season. Warren is back as Van Der Valk, Maimie McCoy returns as Lucienne Hassell. Luke Allen-Gale and Elliot Barnes-Worrell will stay teamed up as Brad de Vries and Job Cloovers. Darrell D'Silva remains as the pathologist Hendrik Davie, and Emma Fielding as boss Julia Dahlman. We assume Trojan, the pup, will also return. 

But, like all shows in 2020, Van Der Valk has a problem. The show was due to start shooting the new season as soon as they were given the ITV go-ahead. Unfortunately, as readers will remember, May was during the peak period of coronavirus cases in most of Europe, and filming was put on hold indefinitely until it was safe to return to the set.

Speaking to Lorriane at the time, Warren admitted he was unsure when filming could continue, guessing it might not be until the fall or even later.

"We were actually due to start shooting the second series on Monday. I don't know when that will be pushed back to, maybe September."

Maimie McCoy said the cast was "gutted" by the delay.

"It's been an amazing response and such huge audiences. We're all itching to get back to it and building those relationships and developing those characters." 

Unfortunately, September has come and gone, and there's been no news of Van Der Valk getting back on schedule. Cases are on the rise once more, and the U.K. is rumored to be heading into a second lockdown. So it may be months before any show gets the green light to get back in front of the cameras, either in Amersterdam or anywhere else.

Hopefully, with only three episodes to film for the second season, once Van Der Valk does get back on track, the turn around will be relatively swift. (The Great British Baking Show managed it in 90 days!) But until then, the first season is streaming on PBS Passport for all to watch.