Will Smith, the writer and executive producer behind Apple TV+’s hit show Slow Horses, has confirmed his decision to step away from the series after the upcoming season 5. Here are the details.
’A good moment to hand over the show’
Smith has been with the show since the beginning, serving as its de facto showrunner and leading the adaptation of Mick Herron’s Slough House spy novels.
Now, as Season 5 wraps post-production and prepares for release on September 24, Smith says it’s time to pass the baton. Here’s what the told Deadline, who first reported his departure:
“Season 5 doesn’t end things by any means. (…) But it concludes certain story arcs that started in Season 1, so it felt like a good moment to hand over the show.”
And
“I didn’t want to lose the sense of fun.(…). There’s always a risk you’ll start to repeat yourself. I want to leave while I’m still delivering my very, very best.”
Smith says that part of what made the decision to leave easier was the show’s increasingly intense production schedule, although he made a point to say he’s leaving on good terms, and with deep affection for the cast, crew, and source material.
Recently, Apple confirmed its decision to renew Slow Horses through season 7. With Smith’s departure, Gaby Chiappe and Ben Vanstone will take over as lead writers for seasons 6 and 7, respectively.
What’s next for Smith
Although he’s stepping away from the main show, Smith admits he’s still eyeing the Slough House universe. His dream project, as he tells Deadline, is an adaptation of Herron’s The Secret Hours, a standalone novel that serves as both a prequel and a side story to the main series:
“His book The Secret Hours is the one I was always saying we should do. He started writing a standalone book in the Slough House universe, and you could feel the Slow Horses coming in, and it ends up flashing back to it. It’s a kind of Lamb/ Molly/ David prequel, as well as a book set in the present. And it’s absolutely brilliant. And it’s one of my favorites he’s done. I think that could be a great standalone film or a three-episode miniseries.”
While that doesn’t materialize, Smith says he’s developing two projects: a TV adaptation of Caledonian Road, Andrew O’Hagan’s novel about the British ruling class, and The Siege, based on Ben Macintyre’s book about the 1980 Iranian Embassy crisis in London.
Slow Horses returns for season 5 on September 24. You can watch seasons 1 through 4 on Apple TV+ now.
Apple TV+ is available for $9.99 per month and features hit TV shows and movies like Ted Lasso, Severance, The Studio, The Morning Show, Shrinking and Silo.
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