Tommy Shelby lit his past on fire and headed towards an uncertain but hopeful future in the Peaky Blinders finale, but something has pulled him back to the life he tried to leave behind in the franchise’s new film, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man. Tommy will once again be played by star Cillian Murphy, but he will be joined by a number of newcomers as well. Recently, the Peaky Blinders creator teased Tommy’s replacement and what drew Tommy back in the first place, and the answers will certainly get fans talking.
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In a new interview with Empire, Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight and director Tom Harper provided some insight into what ultimately draws Tommy back into the fold. “He gets dragged back in by circumstance,” Knight said. “He has to strap his guns back on, true Western-style.” We also know that the future of the Shelby family and the country are at stake (via Netflix), and Tommy will also have to face his own demons and legacy when he returns, so it seems Tommy’s reasons for returning are rather complicated.
Harper also gives some insight into how Tommy’s return is framed in the film. “With Tommy, at the beginning, the film is very still and static and isolated and lonely, and the camera and cinematography and the design and the atmosphere all reflect that,” Harper said.
Peaky Blinders Will Reveal Tommy Shelby’s Replacement…But Who Is It?
The other key here is the addition of Barry Keoghan, and while his role hasn’t yet been revealed, there are some big indicators that he will effectively be playing Tommy’s replacement within the Peaky Blinders. The first indicator is that Keoghan gets to say the series’ trademark line, “By order of the Peaky Blinders.” Knight is staying tight-lipped overall, as when asked about who Keoghan was playing, Knight said, “Ah, that. Here are some embargo forms for everyone…”
Harper gave us a bit more context about Keoghan’s possible role in his description of the time gap and what’s happened with the Peaky Blinders in Tommy’s absence. The team recreated the Garrison for the film, and then described that this new group is mostly led by the next generation. From his description and that image above, it would certainly seem that Keoghan is in fact Tommy’s replacement as the leader of the Peaky Blinders, or at least the new generation driving it.
“It’s eight years since we last saw the Garrison,” Harper said. “Tommy Shelby has not been around. It’s run by the younger generation, many of whom will not have met the older generation.”
This also ties in with what Keoghan said about the project and his love of the series. When asked about the iconic line, Keoghan can’t believe he’s the one saying it. “I feel like I shouldn’t be allowed to say it,” Keoghan said. “It’s such an iconic line.” Keoghan would then reveal he’s been a fan of the show for some time, but it never lined up to actually join the show. “I’d always wanted to be part of it, but the schedules never worked, or I didn’t fit the description of what they were looking for.”
Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man will run in select theaters on March 6, 2026, and will then stream on Netflix on March 20, 2026.
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Image courtesy of Universal Pictures.
