The Bryan Cranston-led Showtime series, Your Honor, has been renewed for a second season. The Emmy Award-winning actor will reprise his role as Michael Desiato, a well-regarded New Orleans judge who must reconsider his own ethical code when his teenage son is involved in a hit-and-run. Matters are complicated even more when Michael learns that the victim was the son of local crime boss Jimmy Baxter, played by Michael Stuhlbarg.
Season 1 of Your Honor also starred Hunter Doohan as Cranston’s son and Hope Davis as Gina, Baxter’s ruthless wife. Supporting roles were played by Carmen Ejogo as Michael’s former protégé, Sofia Black-D’Elia as the younger Desiato’s teacher, and Isiah Whitlock Jr. as Charlie, a smooth politician and Michael's best friend. The first season also touted an impressive collective of guest stars, including Margo Martindale and Maura Tierney. It is unclear which actors will be returning to join Cranston, but Peter Moffat will continue to serve as showrunner and executive producer. Showtime initially ordered ten episodes of Your Honor, which aired in December of 2020.
Now, Collider confirms that Your Honor will return for season 2. The second season will consist of ten new episodes, with production scheduled to start early next year. Gary Levine, the President of Entertainment for Showtime Networks Inc., praised the drama’s powerful writing and performances. His full quote can be read below:
“We were blown away by Your Honor… by the power of Peter’s storytelling, by the depth of Bryan’s performance, and by the overwhelming reaction from our subscribers who watched in record numbers. Imagine our delight when we learned that Peter believed he had more story to tell and Bryan felt he had more depths to plumb. So, along with its millions of fans, I am gleefully shouting ‘Encore!’”
Indeed, the series’ renewal was bolstered by its impressive numbers. Your Honor’s first season was the most-watched debut season to ever air on Showtime, pulling in 6.6 million weekly viewers. It maintained that momentum, with Your Honor’s ethically questionable characters and backroom deals continuing to captivate fans. The drama’s premise had already seen success elsewhere, as it is based on the Israeli series, Kvodo, but the adaptation’s remarkable cast struck a chord with audiences. Critics specifically praised Cranston’s powerful performance as a father stuck in a moral quandary.
Your Honor’s renewal announcement is all the more impressive given that the show was originally intended to be a limited series. It is not the first series to graduate to an unexpected sophomore season. Big Little Lies set out as a limited series, and now it is courting a third season. Similarly, HBO’s The White Lotus just announced a season 2 renewal, and that it will likely be resurrected as an anthology series. Your Honor proves that, with compelling performances and a devoted fanbase, limited series are more than capable of achieving longevity.
Source: Collider