While the best streaming services have entered 2024 with a bang – although there are plenty of much-watch movies leaving platforms imminently – it's actually outside of Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+ and Apple TV+ where you'll find one of January 2024's most acclaimed new drama series.
That's right: The Tourist, starring Jamie Dornan, is back for its season two premiere, following the major success – and 97% Rotten Tomatoes rating – of the original 2022 season. There's good and bad news, though, depending on where you're based: UK audiences get to watch first on the Beeb, with Australia closely behind on its Stan service.
Indeed, for those in the UK, episode one aired on BBC One on 1 January, with episode two following the day after, coinciding with the 2 January full-season launch on Stan. Even BBC iPlayer has gone all-in, with all six S2 episodes available right now if you fancy bingeing the whole lot.
Those in the USA, however, cannot 'forget Netflix' as this title states, as that's the new home of where The Tourist will live. Expect those Stateside will only be able to stream the first season from next month, with season two following from 29 February. That's plenty of time to catch up with Dornan's amnesia-suffering protagonist, stuck in the Australian outback with no idea why – and there are plenty of twists and turns along the way as dark truths are uncovered.
I watched the original season of The Tourist as a latecomer and loved the whole show: its setting, its unlikely cast, its oft quietness, its fearlessness in visiting dark themes, yet its comedy presence too. Season two certainly doesn't shy away from those points, although the setting shifts to an almost opposite – from the Aussie outback to the serene green plains of Ireland.
There's certainly a step-change with season two that didn't pull me in from the off in quite the same manner though. Be that the believability in where characters are at in their lives or the introduction of so many more moving parts to the show, it's still one that I'm willing to strap in for and go along for the ride. Hopefully it'll keep audiences guessing along the way and reveal something special – although at the time of writing its Rotten Tomatoes score (specifically for S2) awaits any official rating to arrive...
