Will there be a Painkiller Season 2?

Will there be a Painkiller Season 2? Netflix viewers have been transfixed by the poignant new series and its true story about the US opioid crisis and its origins, but will there be a second chapter?

Painkiller, starring Matthew Broderick as the nefarious Richard Sackler, dropped on Netflix last week. A fictionalized retelling of real-life events, the narrative chronicles the rise of the Sackler family’s Purdue Pharma, its aggressive marketing tactics of Oxycontin, and the role it had in the opioid epidemic in America. 

Alongside the case, the series gives an unflinching insight into those whose lives were destroyed as a result of Oxycontin addiction, and the authorities who battled for years to put a stop to the Sacklers. 

With Painkiller racing to the number one spot in Netflix’s top 10 chart, viewers might be wondering: will there be a Season 2? Here’s what we know. 

Will there be a Painkiller Season 2?

Netflix is yet to renew Painkiller for Season 2, but it’s looking unlikely that it will go ahead, as the show is listed as a “limited series”. 

A limited series is designed with a predetermined end, telling a complete story in its allotted episodes. Since extending it might compromise its original narrative integrity, it may be that Painkiller ends with its six-episode run.

However, that’s not to say there isn’t more story to tell – far from it, as the case upon which it’s based spans decades and has impacted millions of people’s lives. What’s more, Purdue’s bankruptcy case, which is fraught with controversy, is ongoing. 

The latest update arrived this month when the Supreme Court blocked and paused the firm’s suggested $6 billion settlement, instead scheduling a hearing case with arguments set to start in December. 

Ultimately, the decision will focus on whether the Sackler family can use the Purdue bankruptcy claim to relieve themselves of all future lawsuits relating to actions that caused societal harm. 

Executive producer previously told Tudum: “The opioid epidemic continues to evolve. The story is still going on. It’s playing out in real time, and I imagine that it will continue to play out long after us. It’s a story that’s so big and so awful that it deserves to be told as often and as loudly as it can be.”

Whether there’s room to explore this in a second season is yet to be seen, but that very much depends on whether creators Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster will want to go ahead and how well Season 1 continues to perform over the next month. 

We’ll be sure to keep this page updated if and when there are any announcements about Painkiller Season 2. 

In the meantime, Season 1 is available to stream on Netflix now. You can read about the full cast and characters here, where Richard Sackler is now here, and our other Netflix coverage below: 

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