Fallout TV show director/executive producer Jonathan Nolan says that "really cool conversations" have taken place about a possible second season amid reports that a follow-up is already in development.
Speaking exclusively to TechRadar, Nolan – who helmed the Amazon series' first three episodes – suggested that Prime Video's Fallout TV show wouldn't end after a single season. However, when I pressed him for more details on what a second season could be about, Nolan was hesitant to confirm anything official, choosing instead to tentatively tease that more stories might be in the pipeline.
The forthcoming Prime Video series is set in the same universe as the Fallout games developed by Bethesda. Each title in the studio's ever-expanding dystopian action-RPG franchise is based in a different location, with new characters to interact with, monsters to fight, settlements to visit, and missions to complete. In that sense, Fallout is an anthology-style game series that puts players in the shoes of a new protagonist with each new release.
Fallout's TV adaptation, then, seems tailormade to adopt a compendium-like form of seasonal storytelling akin to Bethesda's 'new game, new location' mantra. And, with popular and award-winning duo Fargo (one of the best Hulu shows) and True Detective (one of the best Max shows) recently leading the anthology TV show charge, there's clearly a market for this kind of TV-based narrative format. So, is that a creative path that Nolan would look to walk? Or would he prefer to continue the journeys of season 1's protagonists?
"It's an ongoing conversation I've had with [Fallout co-showrunners] Geneva [Robertson-Dworet] and Graham [Wagner] about how the show moves forward," Nolan said. "We've had some really cool conversations about it but, for now, we're concentrating on one great season of television. If there are enough people out there who love it, and we're lucky to get the chance to go again, then we'll be playing in the same space, but not necessarily with the same elements."
Has Fallout season 2 secretly been renewed by Amazon?
Taken at face value, Nolan's answer is an evasive one – and, really, that's to be expected. If Fallout season 2 has already been greenlit by Amazon, he's not going to confirm the series' renewal before an official Prime Video announcement is made. Given the streaming industry's penchant for canceling shows, regardless of how popular they are, it wouldn't be in Nolan's best interests to reveal potential season 2 plans ahead of time in case Fallout isn't the big hit I expect it to be.
That said, there are rumors that Fallout season 2 is already in development. Yesterday (April 9), The Hollywood Reporter suggested that Amazon's Fallout series had been gifted a $25 million tax credit by the California Film Commission (CFC) to try to coax its cast and crew to relocate production from New York to the west coast.
Now, this isn't confirmation that Fallout season 2 is on the way, but the CFC only offers these financial packages to projects that have all but been confirmed (well, at least internally by the studio that's making them). At this point, then, it's very likely – although again, I'm keen to stress that this isn't confirmation of a second season of Fallout – that another installment has secretly been greenlit.
FALLOUT, now arriving April 10 @ 6 p.m. PT. pic.twitter.com/a31D8Q5AqLApril 9, 2024
While we wait for the seemingly inevitable news that Fallout season 2 is in the works, there's another slice of good news where one of the best Prime Video shows (potentially, anyway) is concerned.
As the X/Twitter post above confirms, Fallout season 1 is due to launch on Prime Video, aka one of the world's best streaming services, earlier than anticipated in the US. The live-action show was originally set to be released worldwide on Thursday, April 11, with all eight episodes dropping simultaneously. However, US audiences will be able to stream it a few hours earlier than expected. Fallout will now make its Prime Video debut on Wednesday, April 10 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET. UK and Australian viewers, however, will have to wait until April 11 at 2am BST / 11am AEST to watch it.
My Fallout TV show op-ed is live now, so read it for my thoughts on the first four episodes. In the meantime, find out how Amazon's Fallout TV show includes "the one thing we could never do" in the games, according to Bethesda boss Todd Howard.
