Idris Elba stars as the show's lead character, Detective Chief Inspector John Luther
Luther is a British crime drama series[1] starring Idris Elba as the eponymous character DCI John Luther. Written by Neil Cross, the first series, comprising six one-hour long episodes, premiered on 4 May and concluded on 8 June 2010. A second series of four one-hour long episodes was commissioned, broadcasting on BBC One in the summer of 2011. Following the success of the first two series, a third series was commissioned in 2012.[2] The third series of four one-hour long episodes commenced on 2 July 2013 and ran through to the 23 July 2013.
Creator Neil Cross stated that Luther will not return for a fourth television series, although there are plans to turn it into a feature film.[4] In a recent interview with TVLine at the 2014 66th Primetime Emmy Awards[5] and Zap2It while promoting his movie No Good Deed,[6] Elba promised that "the series isn't over," which kept the possibility of future seasons or a feature film of Luther open.
In November 2014 it was reported that Luther will return for another series with Elba reprising his role as the protagonist.[7][8]
Plot
John Luther is a Detective Chief Inspector (DCI) working for the Serious Crime Unit in series one, and the new Serious and Serial Crime Unit in series two and three.[9] A dedicated police officer, Luther is obsessive, possessed, and sometimes dangerous in the violence of his fixations. However, Luther has paid a heavy price for his dedication; he has never been able to prevent himself from being consumed by the darkness of the crimes with which he deals. For Luther, the job always comes first. His dedication is a curse and a blessing, both for him and those close to him. He is unable to arrest Alice Morgan, the murderer in the first episode, and for the rest of the first series she becomes his confidante, giving him an insight into the motivations of other criminals.
Creator Neil Cross has said that Luther is influenced by both Sherlock Holmes and Columbo; the nature of Luther's intellect and its application to solving crimes is comparable to Holmes', whereas the show's use of the inverted detective format was inspired by Columbo.[26]
Filming
The first series was filmed in and around London, England, and produced by BBC Drama Productions. Brian Kirk, Sam Miller and Stefan Schwartz each directed two episodes and series creator Neil Cross wrote all six of the episodes. Leila Kirkpatrick was the line producer for the entire series and Katie Swinden was the producer for a number of episodes. Tim Fleming provided series cinematography for two episodes. Katie Weiland and Victoria Boydell were involved in the series' film editing, with Weiland editing two episodes. Andy Morgan was responsible for the entire series' casting, Paul Cross provided production design and Adam A. Makin was behind the series' art direction.[citation needed]
Series 1 (2010)
The first series of Luther aired in Summer 2010 and received positive reviews from critics, getting an average of 5.9 million viewers per episode.
Series 2 (2011)
In August 2010, the BBC announced that it had commissioned a second series for 2011. Filming started in late September/early October 2010. Originally planned to be broadcast as two two-hour episodes,[27] it was shown as four one-hour episodes. The first episode was shown on BBC One on 14 June 2011.[28]
Series 3 (2013)
In August 2011, the BBC One controller announced that a third series had been commissioned.[29][30]
Filming of the four-episode series started in November 2012.[31][32]Sienna Guillory was cast as Luther's new love interest. Further guest stars include Lucian Msamati and Ned Dennehy.[33] The third series began airing on 2 July 2013[34] and concluded on 23 July.[35]
Special (2015)
On 19 November 2014, it was announced that a two episode special will be aired on the BBC in autumn 2015.[36] Filming began in March 2015.[37]
Future
In 2011, Idris Elba expressed his enthusiasm for making a film adaptation of the series, saying, "That's where the ultimate Luther story will unfold, is in the big silver screen — London as a huge backdrop and a very menacing, horrible character to play against."[38] During a BBC Radio 4 interview in March 2012, co-creator Neil Cross revealed that plans were being made for a Luther film that would begin production at the conclusion of the third series, the show's last.[39] In May 2012, Elba stated in an interview that the third series would serve as the lead-in for the planned film.[40]
Neil Cross has confirmed there will not be a fourth series, but has not ruled out the possibility of a feature film.[41] In September 2012, Neil Cross announced that he was in the process of creating a spin-off of Luther centred around the character of Alice Morgan, starring Ruth Wilson. Cross stated, "The BBC is very interested in the project. The only real question would be how many and how often we would do it - whether it would be a one-off miniseries or a returning miniseries, a co-production or not."[42]
In August 2014, in an interview with TVLine at the 2014 66th Primetime Emmy Awards and Zap2It while promoting his movie No Good Deed, Idris Elba promised that "the series isn't over," which kept the possibility for future seasons or a feature film of Luther open.
In a September 2014 Reddit AMA, Elba addressed the possibility of future plans for Luther and said there were "talks at the moment to figure out a way to bring more Luther back to the TV, but the focus is to try and make a film from it."[43]
In November 2014, Fox are developing a American TV series version of Luther with Cross writing and executive producing the series, Elba is on board as executive producer. The project hails from 20th Century Fox TV, studio-based Chernin Entertainment and BBC Worldwide Prods. Also executive producing are the Chernin company’s Peter Chernin and Katherine Pope and BBC Worldwide Prods’ Jane Tranter and Julie Gardner.[44] On March 12, 2015, The Hollywood Reporter has reported that the network dlayed the the series due of looking at Marlon Wayans for the role but will resume when the pilot season is over and will find a actor for Luther.[45]
Critical reception
Series one was met with positive reviews, according to aggregate review site Rotten Tomatoes, and holds a 95% approval rating, based on 19 reviews. The site's consensus reads: "Gritty and ambiguous, Luther is a captivating drama bolstered by a powerhouse performance from Idris Elba in the title role."[46] It holds a Metacritic score of 82 out of 100, based on 11 collected reviews, and indicating "Universal acclaim".[47] However, The Guardian's Stuart Heritage was initially critical of the show,[48] comparing it to the American series FlashForward in that both series arrived with a large amount of hype but delivered an anticlimactic end product. However, by the fifth episode, Heritage had changed his views, and also called it Idris Elba's best work since The Wire.[49]
The show's second season was met with equally positive reviews, and holds a 100% approval rating, on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 12 reviews. The site's consensus reads: "Luther delves into darker territory in its second season, and Idris Elba's outstanding performance makes this a police procedural of uncommon weight and heft."[50] It holds a Metacritic score of 78 out of 100, based on 9 collected reviews, indicating "Generally favorable reviews".[51]Variety and The Hollywood Reporter highlighted the darker tone, Elba's performance and the production.[52] In the third quarter of 2011, the top-rated shows on BBC America were Doctor Who, Top Gear, and Luther, which together gained the network its highest quarterly ratings ever.[53]
Season 3 was again met with positive reviews, and holds an 84% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 19 reviews.[54] It holds a Metacritic score of 76 out of 100, based on 19 collected reviews, indicating "Generally favorable reviews".[55]
International broadcast
The first series of the show premiered in Australia on ABC1 on 15 October 2010 and in the United States on BBC America two days later.[56] It was also broadcast in Germany (Series 1: September/October 2011; Series 2: March 2012) where it was dubbed and cut, in France on Canal+ and in Poland on Ale Kino+ channel. The second series debuted in the United States on BBC America on 29 September 2011 and Australia on ABC1 on 24 February 2012. The third series ran in the United States on BBC America on four consecutive nights beginning 3 September 2013.[57][58]
The first series was broadcast in Turkey starting January 2012.[59] It was also broadcast as part of a marathon on 14 July 2012 on the BET network in the US and officially began airing on its sister channel Centric on 16 July 2012.
The South Korean cable channel Channel N also aired the series.
In Denmark "Luther" has been aired during 2013 at DR's channel DR2. The Finnish YLE TV2 also aired it in its entirety during 2013. In January 2014 all three series were also broadcast by the Dutch KRO.
The first two dubbed series were broadcast on STV 1 channel in Slovakia (September - October 2013).
The series is available on Netflix (Dutch, English,USA, Canada, Brazil).
In China, the first season is available on popular VOD streaming service PPTV
Soundtrack
Luther's soundtrack is composed by Paul Englishby, who has so far composed the music to all three series. Englishby also incorporates many pop and rock songs into the soundtrack, using these generally in the end credits. A CD called Luther - Songs and Score From Series 1, 2 and 3 has been released on 19 August 2013 and contains many of the themes and songs used in Luther.[61]
