'Phenomenal' British crime drama on Netflix hailed 'best ever' as fans demand new series

Netflix has just dropped a new British crime drama—and fans are already calling it the best thing on the platform, with calls for a second series just days after its release. Dept Q, starring The Crown and A Discovery of Witches actor Matthew Goode, has shot to the top of Netflix’s UK charts and is already ranked as the number two show globally, just behind Sirens. The series has earned rave reviews online and boasts an 82 per cent score on Rotten Tomatoes and a strong 8.3 rating on IMDb.

Created by The Queen’s Gambit showrunner Scott Frank, the series is based on the bestselling Danish novels by Jussi Adler-Olsen and follows the troubled but brilliant DCI Carl Morck (Goode), who is tasked with heading up a newly formed cold case unit in Scotland. At the heart of the series is the mysterious disappearance of a prosecutor named Merritt Lingard.

But layered beneath that is an even darker backstory—DCI Morck and two other detectives were shot at a crime scene, leaving one dead and another paralysed.

Fans have flooded social media with praise, with one tweeting: “Just finished. One of the best shows I’ve watched in the last 10 years. Just f*****g phenomenal acting and dialogue. Loved every second of it.”*

Another fan called it “the best thing on Netflix” in the popular Netflix Bangers Facebook group, while others singled out Goode’s performance as a standout.

“Matthew Goode’s acting is next level,” one viewer wrote. “I hope they make season 2 of this series.”

So will there be a second season of Dept Q? In an interview with LADbible, creator Scott Frank confirmed he’s definitely up for it—but it all depends on viewership numbers.

“I just think people have to watch it in significant enough numbers that it's worth it to do another season, even for me,” he said.

“I mean, I would love to do another season, but if people, you know, don't watch it, then I can take the hint.”

However, Frank already knows exactly where the story would go next. “If [viewers] do watch it in significant numbers, then it would be fun to do the next book, which I already have in my brain how I'd like to do that.”

When asked about whether he'd spoken to star Matthew Goode, Frank said: "Yeah, I've definitely talked to Matthew and producers, but it's really going to be up to the money and up to Netflix."

Dept Q is available to stream on Netflix now.