At the TCA press tour, Michael Lombardo, HBO’s president of programming, spoke about the future of No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency. Though it won’t be continuing as a TV series, there are plans to continue the story in the form of two movies.
No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency ran for seven episodes on HBO, from March until May in 2009. The comedy-drama was filmed on location in Botswana and follows Mma Ramotswe as she operates a detective agency. The cast includes Jill Scott, Anika Noni Rose, Lucian Msamati, and Desmond Dube.
This weekend, Lombardo said, “We’re talking to our friends at the Weinstein Company about the possibility of, and actually developing two scripts, possibly to do two movies. And if we can get the cast together and if everything can come together we’ve love to do it. So it’s alive.”
If they get the final go-ahead, the two HBO movies would likely be shot back-to-back. It seems they won’t be filmed completely in Botswana however.
It was reported last month that the show’s producers had relocated from Botswana to Cape Town. The Botswana government, hard hit by the recession, balked at the idea of subsidizing film production while South Africa doubled their rebate offer.
If the movies are actually made, they’ll be filmed mostly in Cape Town with occasional lensing in Botswana, the locale where the story is set.
What do you think? Are you a fan of No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency? Would you like to see it return as a pair of movies?
Image courtesy HBO.
Please bring this show back. Millions of fans are watching this show all over the world. A month ago it was Norway and Finland for the first time. This month it is HBO Asia to celebrate WOMAN. What a compliment to all of the cast and crew of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency that this was one of the shows they chose to Celebrate WOMEN in Asia. This is too good a show, not to bring in back. Please HBO and Mr. Lombardo, bring the show back.
Yes, a 1000 times yes, we fans have been trying for 18 months on the facebook site to get the show back on the air. We have written everyone connected, including Michael Lombardo. Please bring the back, there are millions of fans, the show is now being shown in Asia by HBO to celebrate WOMEN – what a compliment.
This show was the only reason I had to have HBO. I loved show and I love Jill Scott as precious. What a shame if we only get to see one season. Shame on HBO for canceling the show. Shame, shame. And what do they put on instead, a remake of the sopranos.
I’m an HBO fan for over 30 years. None of my favorite HBO series can hold a candle to this one – not even True Blood, which I adore! There is something about this show that transcends all the superficialities of life and speaks directly to your heart. A brave, yet gentle, intuitive, yet pragmatic, beautiful woman of color & traditional build, making her way in the world by using her deep inner wisdom and quick mind. Precious is hands down the most genuinely admirable female character to come along in my lifetime. AND Jill Scott was born to play… Read more »
My wife and I watched the entire series…we would like more, series, or movie, we don’t care…Jill Scott and staff are fabulous!
I loved the series, and at the time I thought it was the only decent thing on – and certainly the only thing of interest to me that HBO had to offer. It’s disappointing that it was not renewed, but not surprising – it just shows that quality programming is not really what the networks or the majority of the viewing public are looking for. Instead the networks offer shows about housewives selling marijuana and crass ‘reality tv,’ and the viewing public laps it up, reveling in people bieng rude to one another and breaking the law. I cancelled my… Read more »
Can’t believe that such a well written series will not be continued, to give way no doubt for another endless series of programmes containing muck and crime with wanton violence. Such a gentle, inspiring and feel good series…..please reconsider it’s just what we need to cope with all the bad times around us.
I am so saddened about not having a season 2 for the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. This series is very refreshing and so different than the “normal” TV that we are presented with! Why was it cancelled, can it be sold to another network? Was it not marketed proprerly? There is a real “diamond” here; anybody can watch it and there is subject matter appeals to a broad audience…we just have to make it known! I know that I have told many people about the series and now it the local library copy is always on reserve!
I loved the show. I hope they do make the movies so that they can finish where they left off. I thought that I missed some of the episodes because it just ended with no closure.
I just signed up for HBO so I could see the series and now read that it’s cancelled. So sad. I did see the DVD’s. I adore McCall Smith, have read all his #1 Ladies Detective Agency books and am a huge fan. Fantastic series and fantastic TV show. Guess movies will have to do, but would love to see a long term show starting at the beginning with all his books in it. Great quality programming!!
I also thought the series was one of the best ever seen. Very disappointed when it stopped. I rented the DVDs and saw them fairly close together.
Hope you can do more!!
I am heartbroken that The #1 Ladies Detective Agency was canceled. And yes, while I’ll happily go to movies, it’s so disappointing that we won’t be having more episodes of a TV show that we looked forward to — we don’t look forward to TV shows here, and we loved this one. Jill Scott is delightful, we loved the casting of JLB Matekoni, and Anika Noni Rose is the most fun TV character to come along in a LONG time. We loved the next-door hairdresser — even Note, the bad guy, was compelling! Please bring back Precious and her crew!
I thought it was one of the best series – very original with great acting and location scenes. Was hoping it’d be back as a series but will settle for movies.
I thought the 1st series was fantastic, I’m sad there won’t be another.
The first series was a breath of fresh air, total joy and all the reasons that great TV shows are great. What a loss if the superb effort and team work of season one are all that we will ever see.