‘Maigret’s Season 2 Trailer Hints Jules’ Luck Is Running Out
'Maigret' is back on the case for Season 2 as his team slowly dissolves around him.
Move over, Van der Valk. Season 4 of the reimagined reboot may have only just finally debuted on ITV two years after it arrived on PBS to solid ratings, but Masterpiece stopped waiting for Season 5 long ago. There’s a new towheaded detective in town – well, in a different, gorgeously shot non-U.K. city, to be exact – in the reimagined reboot of Maigret, and he’s just as handsomely brooding as he skirts the rules to solve his cases.
Like several of Masterpiece’s hits of the past decade, including Poldark and All Creatures Great & Small, Maigret is a contemporary-set remake of an older series that ran on PBS in the 1980s and ’90s. Unlike Van der Valk and All Creatures, Maigret did air under the Masterpiece banner when it last crossed the pond in 1992, with a version starring Michael Gambon as the famous French detective. However, Maigret has been a fixture on screens large and small since writer Georges Simenon introduced him to the world in 1931’s Pietr-le-Letton (The Strange Case of Peter the Lett), so multiple other adaptations aired independently on local stations as well.
Simenon wrote some 75 Maigret novels, making them an ideal choice for a long-running mystery-of-the-week; hence the many versions over the decades since he was introduced. His near Sherlock Holmes-level of popularity in France over the 20th century also meant Maigret’s presence on European television ran uninterrupted until the 21st century. While our coverage of Season 1 sadly ran into the buzzsaw of budget cuts (and a forced hiatus as we moved house), we’re delighted to see the Season 2 trailer promises more angst for our titular detective and his band of crime-solvers known as “Les Maigrets.”
Here’s the Season 2 synopsis:
This season sees dramatic changes in La Brigade Criminelle. We introduce Maigret's boss and mentor, Director of Police Xavier Guichard, who has become suspicious of Maigret's growing fame and decides to take him down a peg. One of Maigret’s colleagues leaves, another is transferred by Guichard, and replaced by a former Internal Affairs officer, George Bonfils, who immediately makes himself unpopular with Maigret’s core team.
This internal turmoil is the backdrop for daring new adaptations of three of Georges Simenon’s best-known Maigret novels. As Maigret investigates cruel and heartbreaking crimes, he will find that the line between guilt and innocence can be impossibly blurred. He will have to reach deep into his heart to work out his own unique form of justice, for victims and perpetrators alike.
Season 2 will cover three novels across its six episodes: The Hanged Man of Saint-Pholien and The Yellow Dog (both from 1931), and 1952’s Maigret’s Revolver.
Benjamin Wainwright (Belgravia: The Next Chapter) returns for Season 2 as the titular Jules Maigret, alongside Stefanie Martini (The Gold) as his wife, Louise Maigret. The rest of the returning ensemble includes Shaniqua Okwok (It’s a Sin) as Inspector Berthe Janvier; Kerrie Hayes (The Responder) as Sergeant Andrea Lucas; Reda Elazouar (Sex Education) as Detective Karim LaPointe; Nathalie Armin (Showtrial) as Prosecutor Mathilde Kernavel; and Rob Kazinsky (Star Trek: Section 31) as Inspector Justin Cavre.
Season 2 adds Nathaniel Parker (The Inspector Lynley Mysteries) as the new Director of Police, Xavier Guichard, and Alex Bhat (Marie Antoinette) as the new team addition, George Bonfils.
(Masterpiece/Playground)
Patrick Harbinson (The Tower) once again serves as lead writer and showrunner. Director David Evans (Domina) splits helming duties with Lisa Clarke (Sanditon), with Gina Cronk producing. Harbinson also serves as executive producer alongside Simpson for Masterpiece.
Maigret Season 2 will premiere on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at 9 p.m. ET on most local PBS stations, the PBS app, and the PBS Masterpiece Channel alongside Professor T Season 5 at 8 p.m. and The Gold Season 2 at 10 p.m. ET. All episodes will be available to binge on PBS Passport for members on premiere day.
Season 1 episodes are streaming on PBS Passport and the PBS Masterpiece Prime Video Channel.
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