A sequel to blockbuster John Le Carre adaptation Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was in the works, until the author’s estate blocked development.
Anybody not watching Apple TV+’s Slow Horses is not only missing one of the most well written, wittiest spy series on television, but also what is arguably Gary Oldman’s greatest ever screen performance as unkempt, uncouth head of Slough House Jackson Lamb. The fourth series with begin imminently, with series 5 already commissioned.
Before turning to television, Oldman gave another masterclass in acting when he took on the role of George Smiley in the 2011 adaptation of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. Directed by Tomas Alfredson and adapted from John Le Carre’s classic novel by Peter Straughn and Bridget O’Connor, the film followed Smiley as he attempted to unravel a complex web of misinformation and corruption to catch a Soviet double agent at the top of the secret service.
The film did big business at the box office and received huge critical acclaim, so the question of adapting the sequel, Smiley’s People seemed to be a question of when rather than if.
However, as the years went by, no sequel materialized and the rights reverted back to the Le Carre estate. In an interview with the Radio Times, Oldman’s manager Douglas Urbanski revealed that despite repeated attempts to get the sequel off the ground, Le Carre’s estate, run by his sons, have no interest in Oldman reprising the role.
Urbanski said “that’s an odd story. I’ll never know the mystery. We loved Tinker and we started to do prep for Gary to do Smiley’s People, and suddenly there was an unexpected rights issue. We’ve reached out, including again recently, to Le Carré’s sons and — the damnedest thing — they have no interest in Gary playing Smiley again. I don’t know why”.
It was reported in 2021 that the Le Carre estate were planning on relaunching the franchise with a new television series, but as of yet nothing has materialized.
Slow Horses series 4 will be comprised of six episodes, the first of which will be available to stream on Apple TV from the 4th September, with one episode being released each week.
