I love Apple TV+ – it's one of the few subscriptions in my life that I pay without any chagrin or through gritted teeth, and easily my pick as the best streaming service going. Part of that is its fair price, all at one level for the best streaming quality, but mostly it's down to the quality of shows it repeatedly seems to be able to create.
Last year, for instance, one of my favourite shows came out of nowhere – Presumed Innocent. This was a dark and twisty mystery show that centred on some murky actions by a state lawyer, and I loved how it unfolded in murky ways. Now there's going to be a second season, and there's some very surprising news about its star, and the planned plot.
Who was in Presumed Innocent season 1?
While there were plenty of other impressive performances riddled throughout the show, really there's no denying that the first season of Presumed Innocent was all about Jake Gyllenhaal. He played Rusty Sabich, the main character in the story, and got to give a potent demonstration of his massive range as an actor.
After all, we see Sabich in a whole heap of different modes, both in flashbacks and as the story unfolds. He's able to give moments as a loving father, a dedicated worker, a spurned lover, a lustful partner, a jilted husband, a paranoid egomaniac and an obsessive investigator – all in one show!
It's a brilliant turn from him that deserved a little more acclaim than it got, underlining how the show could be a brilliant vehicle for an actor looking to flex their muscles (metaphorically).
Who's replacing Jake Gyllenhaal in season 2?
The curious thing, though, is that we're apparently not getting more from Gyllenhaal. Ignoring the two sequels to the book they used for the first season, the showrunners have decided to instead use the title to switch to a new story entirely, from a different novelist.
That means Presumed Innocent might turn into something a little like True Detective, telling largely disconnected criminal stories each season with a fresh cast. In Presumed Innocent's second season, we'll reportedly get Rachel Brosnahan in a starring role.
She's already led a successful show, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and has terrific range, so she could be a brilliant bit of casting. The novel being chosen this time is Jo Murray's Dissection of a Murder, apparently, which revolves around a junior lawyer thrust into the spotlight in a high-profile trial when the defendant insists that only she can represent them.
That sounds pretty terrific as a set-up, but this all comes with a major caveat – it will probably be a long while before we get to see any of it. The show isn't yet filming, as far as we know, so brace yourself for a bit of a wait.
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