The Night Agent season 1 was massive for Netflix, and there are a few reasons behind the action thriller’s success. Based on a novel of the same name by Matthew Quirk, The Night Agent premiered on Netflix in March 2023. By June of that same year, the series had accumulated over 812 million hours watched, making it Netflix’s biggest show of 2023 in the January-June period by a significant margin. As a result, it is hardly a surprise that The Night Agent season 2 is happening.
The Night Agent’s cast was led by Gabriel Basso as Peter Sutherland Jr. and Lucine Buchanan as Rose Larkin. Their fates become intertwined once Peter, working at the Night Action program’s desk job, picks up a phone call and has to help Rose escape from two assassins. Between the relatively simple story of two characters trying to unveil a conspiracy and the compelling mysteries surrounding Peter Sutherland, The Night Agent checked all the boxes for what a solid action series needs.
Title | Release Date | Hours Viewed |
|---|---|---|
The Night Agent: Season 1 | 2023-03-23 | 812.100.000 |
Ginny & Georgia: Season 2 | 2023-01-05 | 665.100.000 |
The Glory: Season 1 // 더 글로리: 시즌 1 | 2022-12-30 | 622.800.000 |
Wednesday: Season 1 | 2022-11-23 | 507.700.000 |
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story | 2023-05-04 | 503.000.000 |
10 The Night Agent’s Main Characters Were Compelling Enough
Peter and Rose were a compelling duo
Although The Night Agent followed quite a few characters, including but not limited to the two assassins and the bodyguards of Maddie, the show was primarily focused on Peter and Rose. With just 10 episodes to tell a complete story, The Night Agent did not waste time with side stories, meaning everything that happened on the show was directly tied to the journeys of Rose and Peter. Keeping everything tied to the main characters may seem like an easy feat, but some shows have struggled with it. Additionally, both Peter and Rose were compelling and interesting enough.
9 The Night Agent’s Story Was Easy To Follow (& Still Had Twists)
The Netflix hit told a relatively simple story
The Night Agent’s story was not overly complicated, and the series avoided featuring too many twists just for the sake of it. As a result, the Netflix show was easy to follow, which surely helped with its popularity. Unlike other recent major streaming hits, The Night Agent was not part of a larger franchise like Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, nor was it adapting a fantastical universe like Wednesday or One Piece. The relatively grounded story and solid action were combined with a straightforward plot to deliver a show that could work for multiple demographics.
8 The Night Agent’s Metro Bombing Mystery Was Engaging
Peter’s investigation set the narrative for the show
The Night Agent had a very clear storyline, which was the investigation conducted by Peter himself to understand who was truly behind the metro bombing, and how it all connected to Rose’s family being killed. The show never abandons its main storyline, and every new development is somewhat tied to one overarching mystery. Although The Night Agent’s metro bombing storyline was predictable, it worked perfectly as the show’s central story, especially as the truth began to unfold and Peter realized they were still in danger.
7 Peter & Rose’s Relationship In The Night Agent Works
The two characters work well as a couple
Considering Peter and Rose are The Night Agent’s main characters, whether their relationship works on screen plays a huge role in the quality of the show itself. The romance between Peter and Rose is not The Night Agent’s central story, but it does represent a significant part of it, even more so in the latter half of the series. The chemistry between the actors is solid, and so is the writing behind how Rose and Peter grow closer. By the end of the series, audiences are connected to Peter and Rose not only as individual characters but also as a couple.
6 The Night Agent’s 10-Episode Format Suited The Show Perfectly
The Night Agent had no filler episodes
While the “10-hour movie” format has been popular for several years now, partially thanks to Netflix’s binge-watching model, not every show can nail it. Even series with a short amount of episodes can struggle with pacing, and some of them even include filler episodes that do not add much to the story. The Night Agent’s pacing, on the other hand, is arguably perfect. Every episode adds a piece to the puzzle, and the show never focuses on side characters for too long. The Night Agent is a great example of how the 10-episode formula can work.
9 Shows Like The Night Agent To Watch While Waiting For Season 2
There’s still no official date for season 2 of The Night Agent, but there are a few similar shows to keep fans entertained until then.
5 The Night Agent Was Action-Packed All Throughout
There was never a dull moment on the show
Although the mystery and the drama surrounding Peter Sutherland’s story were interesting, The Night Agent would not have been as big as it was without solid action scenes. Almost every episode of the show had at least one action sequence, which helped with the pacing and made sure the series would never become dull. Keeping audiences engaged at a time when there are so many movies and TV shows available across all streaming platforms is difficult, and having good action scenes throughout a series goes a long way in that regard.
4 The Night Agent’s Cliffhanger Endings Made It Perfect To Binge-Watch
Each episode led right into the next one
Good pacing sometimes is not enough to keep viewers hooked, which is why The Night Agent’s cliffhanger endings were important for the show’s success. Every episode of the show leads right into the next one, either through an actual cliffhanger or at least a major reveal. Excluding the time skip at the beginning of the series, The Nigth Agent takes place within days, which makes the show more bingeable. Even after Peter realized Diane Farr was behind it all alongside the Vice President, the show still had to reveal whether Peter’s father was innocent.
3 The Night Agent Was A Self-Contained Story
The Night Agent was a standalone 10-hour movie
The Night Agent was not a sequel or a spinoff, which itself can help a show at a time when audiences are looking for something new or original. Additionally, even though The Night Agent’s ending left room for season 2, it was a self-contained conclusion for the show. Some The Night Agent questions were indeed left unanswered, but nothing that would make a second season essential for the series to make sense. Viewers get a complete experience out of the show, which surely played a role in its popularity.
2 The Night Agent Successfully Continued A Popular Genre
Action thriller book adaptations continue to work
The Night Agent is not the first action thriller show, based on a novel or not, to become a streaming hit, and it will not be the last. Series like Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan and Reacher have proved that there is a demand for action-packed stories told in a serialized format, which The Night Agent does very well. Interestingly, there is not a sequel to The Night Agent book, meaning that season 2 will have to be an original story rather than an adaptation.
1 The Night Agent’s Ending Delivered On The Show’s Promises
The Night Agent’s ending is satisfying
From who was behind the metro bombing to whether Peter Sutherland’s father was a traitor, The Night Agent raised a lot of questions throughout the show. Leaving any of these mysteries open at the end of the season could have made the finale anticlimactic, a mistake that The Night Agent avoided. Peter gets all the answers he was looking for, and both he and Rose get a happy ending. Peter now has a new career as a Night Agent, but his season 1 story was already resolved. This sense of finality made The Night Agent even better in retrospect.
Watch The Night Agent on Netflix
- Release Date
- March 23, 2023
- Cast
- Gabriel Basso , Luciane Buchanan , Hong Chau , Sarah Desjardins , Fola Evans-Akingbola , Eve Harlow , Enrique Murciano , Phoenix Raei , DB Woodside
- Seasons
- 1
- Streaming Service(s)
- Netflix
