Ever since Watchmen ended its nine-episode run on HBO in December, fans of the series have wondered if and when the series would come back for a second season. Speaking to USA Today earlier today, showrunner Damon Lindelof quashed those hopes, saying that he’s not interested in returning to the world for more.
Lindelof and HBO have been quiet about the prospects of a second season, saying even as the series kicked off that it might be a one-and-done project. In October, Lindelof noted that while they see how the show was received by fans and critics when it aired, they would “certainly take that into consideration,” but indicated that the series was designed as a completed story. “We want to deliver nine episodes that deliver a complete and total amazing story.”
That they did. While the lead-up to the series was filled with confusion (was it a sequel? A side-quel? A continuation? Reboot? Retelling? Remix?) the project ended up being one of the best works of television on the air last year, telling a poignant story about the legacy of racism and the dangers of superheroes and masks. What’s more, it stuck the landing, capping off a story in a way tied everything together in a nice bow that didn’t feel like a cop-out or diminish what the preceding episodes accomplished.
Understandably, Lindelof and his team left just enough questions to keep a tiny door open for with possibility of a second season. Certainly, with that much goodwill and acclaim, HBO would be foolish to not try and keep it going, and seemed open to the possibility. During yesterday’s Television Critics Association briefing HBO programming chief Casey Bloys told Deadline that they’d interested, but that “it is really up to Damon at this point.”
“Truly, I don’t know at this point whether it is a returning drama series or a limited series. I think one of the things Damon did so brilliantly was, he opened up this entire world. So maybe there is another version with a whole new set of characters. I don’t know because Damon doesn’t know, and I’m taking his lead on this.”
Lindelof’s interview with USA Today seems to shut the door on that, in which he said that he gave HBO his blessing to continue the show. But Bloys noted that “it would be hard to imagine doing it without Damon involved in some way.”
