Deutschland83 TV series renewed for second season Deutschland86 on SundanceTV. (Photo Credit: Nik Konietzny.)

As expected back in August, the Deutschland83 TV show has been renewed for a second season on SundanceTV, with the new title, Deutschland86. The Cold War spy thriller from creators Anna Winger and Joerg Winger will return to East and West Germany, but as the new name suggests, it will make a time jump to 1986. Should the Deutschland TV series be renewed for a third season, expect it to return as Deutschland89.

Deutschland follows Martin Rauch (Jonas Nay), a 20-something East German native who is embedded in the West German military, to gather NATO military secrets. The cast also includes Maria Schrader, Ulrich Noethen, Sylvester Groth, Sonja Gerhardt, Ludwig Trepte, Alexander Beyer, and Lisa Tomaschewsky.

Get the details from this SundanceTV press release.

SUNDANCE TV PARTNERS WITH FREMANTLEMEDIA INTERNATIONAL AND UFA FICTION TO PICK UP SECOND SEASON OF PEABODY AWARD-WINNING SERIES “DEUTSCHLAND83”

Thriller to return as “Deutschland86” and explore a critical time period in German history

NEW YORK – October 14, 2016 – SundanceTV and FremantleMedia International announced today that the international co-production “Deutschland83” has been picked up for a second season and will see the network co-produce the series with UFA Fiction. The critically acclaimed spy thriller, created by Anna Winger and Joerg Winger, explored the tense atmosphere between East and West Germany in 1983 in its first season.

“Deutschland86” returns three years later and picks up the story of East German Agent Martin Rauch (Jonas Nay) and his compatriots in the Stasi Foreign Intelligence in 1986. Martin has been banished to Africa until Aunt Lenora recruits him to fight for the last gasp of Communism in the Global Cold War. Set against the backdrop of real events during the last “Summer of Anxiety,” when terrorism raged across Western Europe, Martin’s dark mission takes him to Johannesburg, Tripoli, Paris, West Berlin and finally back to East Berlin, where he is forced to face new realities at home – and to make an impossible decision.

Deutschland86 is a production of UFA Fiction in cooperation with Amazon, FremantleMedia International and UFA Distribution. Head Writer is Anna Winger. Producers are Jörg Winger, Sebastian Werninger, and Ulrike Leibfried. Shooting of the new episodes will start next year and the series will bow on SundanceTV in 2018.

Joel Stillerman, president of original programming and development for AMC and SundanceTV, said, “‘Deutschland83’ is a key example of the terrific, entertaining content SundanceTV has collaborated on with creative voices from around the world. Anna and Joerg Winger did an incredible job taking well-known historical events and framing them with a unique lens in the first season. We know that they will offer a fresh perspective to the events in Germany in 1986 and are thrilled to join them on their journey back in time.”

Lisa Honig, SEVP, television & digital distribution, North America for FremantleMedia International said, “The response for ‘Deutschland83’ from the US viewers was incredible and we’re thrilled to be partnering with SundanceTV once again to bring the second season of the German drama to the fans. We, as well as the rest of the world, cannot wait to see what’s ahead for our hero Martin Rauch.”

SundanceTV launched in summer 2015. The German-language series went on to win many national and international awards, including a prestigious Peabody Award. Further, the series was lauded as “an ingenious, counterintuitive look at the Cold War” by The New York Times, as well as “a spy thriller you won’t be able to look away from” by Buzzfeed.

What do you think? Did you watch Deutschland83? Do you plan to tune in for Deutschland86?