Station Eleven could come back for a second season as an anthology, according to star Mackenzie Davis. Station Eleven, based on the book of the same name by Emily St. John Mandel, premiered on HBO Max in December 2021 with a ten-episode season covering the events of the novel. Along with Davis, the series stars Himesh Patel, Matilda Lawler, David Wilmot, and Lori Petty.
Station Eleven follows a group of traveling performers who live in a world ravaged by a flu pandemic and must contend with a violent cult. The series received critical acclaim from reviewers with many citing the performances, story, and thematic weight as strong points. Station Eleven notably began filming before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the effects of which influenced the show's narrative of how people would react in a world that's been affected by a pandemic.
When asked by Variety, Davis says that if the series were to return, it would be in anthology format, following a new group of characters in the same world. She says how St. John Mandel mentioned there's a group of people in that world that have a thriving agricultural settlement that would make for a new setting. She elaborates by saying that the experience the characters have in the first season isn't everyone's experience and that there's more to explore by those who aren't traveling bards. Read Davis' quote below:
What would interest me would be an anthology series. Something that Emily St. John Mandel, who wrote the book, has said, this isn’t everybody’s experience. This is the experience of this group of people in this area of the world. There is a completely different group of people that have built an agricultural wonderland, and aren’t traveling bards and aren’t cobbling together this meager existence and settlements. I think that interests me more than then like excavating these characters.
It's already been said that Station Eleven wouldn't continue the story of the first season, having already exhausted the source material. It seems Davis herself understands that and isn't interested in resurrecting the character she already played. Showrunner Patrick Somerville is currently adapting another of St. John Mandel's books for the screen, The Glass Hotel, which features some crossover elements with Station Eleven and could work as a spiritual successor.
Television adaptations based on books often run into trouble when they run out of source material, with Game of Thrones, The Handmaid's Tale, and Big Little Lies all arguably suffering from drops in quality after they used up their print-based inspiration. It would be unwise for Station Eleven to follow that trend, and it seems the creatives behind the series know it, and should instead focus on something new in that world. One of Station Eleven season 1's strengths is that it feels like a completed story, and all great stories know exactly where to end.
Source: Variety