After directing Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Rian Johnson pivoted away from the galaxy far, far away and went to the realm of murder mysteries. In addition to writing and directing the Knives Out films (the third of which comes out later this year), Johnson has left his mark on the genre on the small screen. He’s the creator of Poker Face, the critically acclaimed TV series starring Natasha Lyonne. Since debuting a couple of years ago, Poker Face has been one of the most successful shows on the Peacock streaming service, earning numerous accolades (including an Emmy nomination for Lyonne). Despite that reception, Peacock has opted to pull the plug, but Johnson has a surprising plan in mind to keep Poker Face around.
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According to Deadline, Peacock has not renewed Poker Face for a third season. No reasoning for the cancellation was provided, though the outlet notes that “the show is expensive” and “the ratings were down” compared to the first season, implying Peacock felt the viewership wasn’t there to continue the investment. Johnson is now in the process of shopping Poker Face around to new distributors, hoping to secure a two-season deal. Most interestingly, Lyonne is no longer attached as the star. Johnson now wants Peter Dinklage to portray Charlie Cale. It’s part of a concept Johnson has for Poker Face in which the series lead would change every couple of seasons.
Poker Face Recasting Plan Is Surprising, but It Could Work
Johnson attempting to get Poker Face renewed elsewhere doesn’t come as a shock. That’s a fairly typical industry practice when a show is cancelled (there are multiple instances of shows being saved by different networks). Recasting Charlie Cale is the biggest surprise here. Lyonne has been the face of Poker Face since it debuted, and it’ll be difficult for fans to envision the series without her. Her performance is such an integral part of why Poker Face was so successful. That said, Johnson and Lyonne said in a statement that they have “been germinating this next move together since writing the season two finale,” so this has seemingly been part of their plans for the series. Based on Johnson’s track record, he’s earned the benefit of the doubt to pull this off.
While not exactly an apples to apples comparison, Poker Face is looking to take cues from the James Bond franchise, which has seen multiple actors play 007. That strategy has allowed the IP to endure for decades, giving creative teams the ability to play with different styles and tones. Each Bond feels unique, and the same could be true for the different iterations of Charlie Cale. This would be a way for the series to continually feel fresh; Dinklage’s portrayal of Cale would undoubtedly be quite different from Lyonne’s, allowing Johnson and Co. to show another side of the character while still keeping Poker Face‘s core premise intact.
Poker Face‘s format makes recasting the series lead easier. The show primarily consists of standalone, “case of the week” episodes and doesn’t have much serialization. So it’s not like Johnson would be abandoning ongoing storylines and plot threads by taking Poker Face in a drastically different direction with Dinklage. Season 3 could just be simply presented as a new iteration of Charlie Cale solving a new batch of mysteries. Limiting the commitment to two seasons could also make Poker Face an appealing proposition for actors, meaning the talent pool shouldn’t be limited.
There’s still some work to be done before Poker Face Season 3 gets off the ground. It remains to be seen if another network will pick the show up, but there should be some suitors. With Taylor Sheridan leaving Paramount soon, perhaps Paramount+ could become the new home of Poker Face, giving the streamer a new flagship show to fill a void. Johnson also has a history with Netflix, so maybe that relationship could continue. Someone should be interested in reviving Poker Face. It’s an acclaimed show and Dinklage is a recognizable star with the range to carry comedic murder mysteries. It would be fun to see Johnson get a chance to put this plan into action.
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