The Night Manager Explained

WatchMojo

Dive into the world of espionage and deception with our breakdown of the acclaimed series starring Tom Hiddleston and Hugh Laurie. From John le Carré's novel to its award-winning TV adaptation, we explore how Jonathan Pine infiltrated Richard Roper's criminal empire and what to expect in the upcoming revival on Prime Video in 2026.

Transcript

00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at the background, story, and incredible success

00:24of the TV espionage masterpiece, The Night Manager.

00:26If you're not caught up, know that we will be recapping the whole first season and John

00:32LeCarré's original novel.

00:34Catch the second season, A Decade in the Making, on Prime Video in January 2026.

00:40In February 2016, Tom Hiddleston introduced audiences to the many faces of reluctant

00:45spy Jonathan Pine, while Hugh Laurie brought master criminal Richard Onslow Roper to the

00:50table.

00:50This and more turned The Night Manager into a major hit for both the BBC and co-producer

00:55AMC.

00:56And with a popular resurgence on Prime Video, the streamer helped revive The Night Manager

01:01for two more series in 2024.

01:04Hiddleston returns to the field on New Year's Day 2026, just shy of the show's 10th anniversary.

01:10Even fans will need a recap.

01:12Certainly newcomers need to understand the hype that inspired this bold comeback.

01:16Should we begin?

01:24Is there anything keeping you awake at night?

01:28Identifying the Source

01:30Renowned spy writer John LeCarré published The Night Manager in 1993.

01:35His first novel after the Cold War became a New York Times bestseller, with praise for

01:39its lofty political themes alongside compelling tension and characters.

01:43Paramount Pictures quickly bought the film rights, tapping Oscar-winning screenwriter Robert Towne

01:48to adapt.

01:49Unfortunately, LeCarré's storytelling was too complex for a short-form format.

01:54Two decades later, the BBC, along with Ink Factory in association with Character 7, commissioned

01:59a six-episode serial with David Farr attached to write.

02:03Farr had the skills and the modern means of peak TV to do LeCarré's story justice, as he

02:08had previously worked on the acclaimed spy drama Spooks, which was created by Character 7's

02:13Stephen Garrett, when he was with the production company Kudos.

02:16Right, let's get this stuff ashore onto the truck, shall we?

02:19New Intel

02:20John LeCarré's novels tended to be products of a very specific time.

02:251993's The Night Manager explores the legacy of Cold War-era policies that expanded international

02:30criminal enterprise.

02:31In addition to illegal arms, Richard Roper also traffics narcotics, and is dealing with

02:37a Colombian cartel looking to militarize.

02:39The heads of a cartel that was totally different than the other cartels, they looked at it more

02:46as a business to expand.

02:49It's a very different backdrop from the belated adaptation's focus on geopolitics after the

02:54Arab Spring.

02:55But it's tragically not different enough.

02:58Both stories look at criminal empires as a byproduct of Western espionage and capitalism

03:02that thrives on bureaucracy.

03:04In that context, I find the actions of Riverhouse somewhat inimical to the new era of parliamentary

03:11accountability and transparency.

03:13Never mind corrupt officials collaborating with criminals out of financial and national

03:17security interests.

03:19The show goes even more cynical by giving Roper the facade of a philanthropist who secretly

03:23exploits humanitarian crises.

03:26Otherwise, the TV show closely follows the book's plot to dramatize these themes.

03:30See, children grow up thinking the adult world is ordered, rational, fit for purpose.

03:38It's crap.

03:39Becoming a man is realizing that it's all rotten.

03:45Realizing how to celebrate that rottenness.

03:47That's freedom.

03:50The Operation, Episodes 1 through 3.

03:53In 2011, Sophie Alikan enters the Nefertiti Hotel with evidence of the Hamid family's role

03:59in British entrepreneur Richard Roper's illegal arms trade.

04:03The British night manager Jonathan Pine falls in love as he tries to secure her asylum in

04:07the UK.

04:08But Sophie is murdered when he fails.

04:10Why would a burglar do that?

04:11What do you care?

04:13Maybe you know her better than you say.

04:17Maybe you'll kill her.

04:18Four years later, Pine is working in Switzerland when he has a chance encounter with Roper that

04:26he brings to the attention of Angela Burr of the Foreign Office's International Enforcement

04:30Agency.

04:31What do you want, Miss Burr?

04:34I want to make you an offer.

04:36Come and work for me.

04:39And afterwards, when it's all over, I will look after you.

04:41Resettlement, new name, new identity, new life.

04:44Pine is ultimately able to infiltrate Roper's organization by thwarting his son's staged

04:50kidnapping, despite the vicious scrutiny of Roper's right hand, Lance Corky Corcoran.

04:54Pine eventually heads Roper's front company, Trade Pass, under the alias Andrew Birch.

04:59But despite Burr's best efforts to hide Operation Limpet from potentially corrupt superiors,

05:04its existence reaches Roper.

05:06You know, I have my suspicions about you.

05:09Suspicion is unfortunately a tool of my trade.

05:12Corky's jealousy is very infectious.

05:14But it's not really jealousy, it's lust.

05:18The Assets

05:19The Night Manager establishes its theme of dual identities right alongside its protagonist.

05:25We meet Jonathan Pine protecting affluent hotel guests from riots in Egypt,

05:29then bonding with local staff as they celebrate the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak.

05:34The humanization of the vilified elite extends to Richard Roper,

05:39an apparent humanitarian and family man who can always excuse his actions.

05:43The truth is that he's a monster, particularly toward his secretive American girlfriend,

05:48Jemima Jed Marshall.

05:49Jed is in a very bad way, and I'm not feeling particularly sentimental about her welfare.

05:56Her life depends on the quality of your performance in the next half hour.

06:01Everyone is leading a double life, with Pine's handler being changed from a man in the book

06:09to the pregnant Angela Burr, seemingly to partly symbolize the omnipresence of multiple identities.

06:15Where's it going?

06:16Istanbul.

06:18That's where Apostol's going.

06:20The Spanish lawyer.

06:22We need to split units units to get to Istanbul now.

06:24Take Pearl and the team with you.

06:26What am I looking for?

06:27A familiar face.

06:28I think Andrew Birch is someone closer than we think.

06:30These philosophies manifest in both character arcs and political circumstances.

06:34Even Roper's awareness of Jed's son in New York reflects the fragility of secrets in the information age.

06:40If nothing else, these layers add to the suspense of Pine's infiltration.

06:45I'm afraid Freddy was a little bit of a bad boy last night.

06:49I think he might be paying the price this morning.

06:51We can make a start without him if you're content.

06:54I suggest we process the second half of the payment.

06:58I'm entirely content.

07:00Good.

07:01Closing in.

07:02Episodes 4 through 6.

07:04Trade Pass heads out for a humanitarian mission in Syria as a cover for an arms deal.

07:08Pine has begun an affair with Jed, and Burr has managed to flip Roper's lawyer Juan Apostol.

07:14Listen, I'm on the side of the angels.

07:18We're good people.

07:19Play it straight and we keep our promises.

07:22Okay?

07:24But I need your help.

07:26She also identifies Roper's colleague Halo as MI6 commander Jeffrey Dromgoole,

07:31who is protecting the arms trade to serve the UK's geopolitical stronghold.

07:35Unfortunately, Operation Limpid is shut down after Dromgoole helps Roper avoid arrest and kill Apostol.

07:42Pine saves himself by confiding in Jed and collaborating with her to frame Corki,

07:47whom Pine then kills.

07:50Then it's off to, of all places, Cairo's Nefertiti Hotel to hand off the weapons.

07:55There, Roper catches Jed trying to steal documents and deduces her affair over torture.

08:01You know, I never really thought you had it in you.

08:05You know what I think?

08:07I think you must care very deeply about the person you're protecting.

08:11She would have been trafficked if Burr didn't go rogue to break into Roper's room.

08:16Meanwhile, Pine sabotages the weapons shipment and diverts the client's $300 million payment.

08:22With Dromgoole's corruption exposed, the proper authorities promptly arrest Roper.

08:26But he's bound for a fate worse than prison when the clients commandeer the police convoy.

08:40No! No! No!

08:43This departs from the book's ending,

08:45in which Burr negotiates Pine and Jed's release by allowing Roper to get away.

08:49Le Carre's bleaker vision appears to epitomize how he was more focused on politics

08:54than the show's philosophical character study.

08:56Or perhaps Roper's demise and Pine's plans to move to New York with Jed

09:00were meant to imply to audiences that there would be no second season.

09:03Be good.

09:08You're a funny fish, Jonathan.

09:13I know.

09:15Debrief

09:16The Night Manager won rave reviews for its deep suspense, themes, and characterization.

09:21Among its many accolades were seven BAFTA TV Award nominations and 12 Emmy nominations.

09:27Actors Tom Hiddleston, Hugh Laurie, and Olivia Colman all won Golden Globes.

09:32Moreover, the British-American co-production brought over 9 million viewers per episode,

09:37before generating even more buzz during its run on AMC.

09:40I'm guessing that you're Churchill in this scenario, if you insist.

09:45The show's success directly inspired the BBC to commission the similarly acclaimed

09:502018 adaptation of Le Carre's Little Drummer Girl.

09:53And yet, it took years of sustained popularity on streaming to inspire whispers of a revival.

09:59Finally, in April 2024,

10:01Prime Video announced that they had renewed The Night Manager for two additional seasons.

10:05Now, writer David Farr faces the daunting task of starting from scratch.

10:10So how does it feel, knowing that for the next 24 hours,

10:14you've learned enough weaponry to start a war?

10:19It feels good.

10:22Sure you won't join me?

10:23No, I'm fine, thank you.

10:25Redeployment

10:25The revival of The Night Manager is working without source material.

10:29But Season 2 does pay homage to John le Carre's original premise,

10:33with the addition of a Colombian former business associate of Richard Roper.

10:37Welcome to Colombia.

10:40Teddy DeSantos' criminal enterprise is the latest target of Jonathan Pine,

10:45who has spent the last eight years running covert operations for MI6.

10:49The series also brings back Olivia Colman,

10:51with a new cast that includes Diego Calva, Camila Marrone, and Kirby Howell-Baptiste.

10:56This follow-up also promises to be more action-packed,

11:00but there are many intriguing, dramatic questions.

11:02How has Pine been affected by a life of deception and death?

11:06What became of Jed Marshall?

11:08And how will the spycraft and themes be affected

11:10by a whole decade of real-world political turbulence?

11:13The heads of production company The Ink Factory,

11:16who are also Le Carre's sons,

11:18claim they didn't want to move forward

11:19until Farr delivered a concept worthy of their father's legacy.

11:23Whether Prime Video will deliver on January 1st, 2026,

11:27fans are eager to return.

11:28Tell me who you really are.

11:32I am the man who will not explode.

11:36Watch the new season of The Night Manager

11:38starting January 11th on Prime Video.

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