Warning: Minor spoilers ahead for the Dark Matter season 1 finale.

Dark Matter may be over, but the Apple TV+ multiverse show could be the cornerstone of a potential shared universe of live-action Blake Crouch adaptations. The original Dark Matter novel was written by Crouch, who also served as the showrunner for season 1 of the TV show. While Dark Matter is a standalone story, the live-action adaptation contains hints and sci-fi tropes that make it perfect for crossovers with other stories by the same writer. With the possibility of a Dark Matter season 2 on the horizon, the possibilities open up even more.

Even though the Apple TV+ show has already exhausted the source material, Dark Matter could be back for more if certain teases pay off. Crouch made several changes to the Dark Matter book when writing the TV show, meaning there is greater scope to broaden the universe than there ever was in his original 2016 novel. The author has written an impressive array of sci-fi books that could be ripe for the picking and combined with Dark Matter lore. What remains to be seen is if this is the avenue Crouch and Apple TV+ choose to pursue.

Dark Matter’s Multiverse Trope Allows Other Blake Crouch Stories To Happen Within The Same Canon

The other realities in Dark Matter could easily accommodate other Crouch novels

Both versions of Dark Matter are set within an infinite multiverse, with the main story taking place across what is a very small sample size of the number of realities the characters could travel to. So, all that needs to happen for other Blake Crouch books to share their continuity with Dark Matter is for them to unfold in a universe that just hasn’t yet been seen onscreen. Even within Dark Matter canon, it’s possible that the Dark Matter book could be happening concurrently with the events of the show – just in a parallel dimension.

So, along with all the other bizarre and macabre universes seen by Jason in Dark Matter, there could be an individual reality for each Crouch book that simply hasn’t been visited yet. The only other Blake Crouch adaptation so far has been his Wayward Pines trilogy, which ran for 2 seasons from 2015 to 2016. Wayward Pines is set so far in the future that it’s impossible to convincingly tie into this possibility of a shared universe. However, it’s perhaps more likely that Apple TV+ will produce Crouch’s other adaptations. So, this effectively rules Wayward Pines out of contention.

Dark Matter Has Already Teased 2 More Blake Crouch Adaptations

Crouch included the titles of more of his own books in Dark Matter

Dark Matter season 1 makes no clear attempt to reference other works by Blake Crouch until deep into its run. In episode 7, “In the Fires of Dead Stars,” an Easter Egg in the back of a shot mentions Upgrade and Summer Frost by name. Both are titles of other literary works by Crouch, and the fact they’re listed outside a movie theater is too much of a massive clue to ignore. The third title on the board is It’s a Wonderful Life, which Dark Matter has often been compared to.

So, this trio of stories could be interpreted to be the first three Crouch books to be adapted by Apple TV+. Dark Matter is perhaps Crouch’s most high-profile novel, so it makes sense that it was produced for the big screen ahead of the others. Thankfully, it also has the most suitable narrative framework that can allow other books by the author to fit within the same fictional universe.

Of course, it could just be true that Summer Frost and Upgrade are slated to be adapted next, and that their tiles being teased in Dark Matter is nothing more than just a traditional Easter Egg. However, a meta nod to a shared canon isn’t completely out of the question. Multiverses and in-canon crossovers are very popular at the moment, as evidenced by properties like the MCU and the DCEU. So, Apple TV+ may be cashing in on the trend by delving deeper into Blake Crouch’s body of work.

Crouch Has Been Vocal About Another Novel He’s Trying To Have Adapted

Dark Matter may soon have company on Apple TV+

When Dark Matter was being released weekly, Crouch was very active on social media. Presumably, this was to help promote his new show, but his interactions with fans were incredibly telling of his future plans. While many of the comments on his Instagram posts were from fans of the Dark Matter book who were voicing their excitement, they also kept mentioning another novel of his that they’d love to see adapted. Blake Crouch’s Recursion was first published in 2019, and the author sounds as though he’s trying to get that project into production too.

He responded to several comments about Recursion receiving the live-action treatment, and it was mostly with the sentiment that he agreed and that he shared the desire. Recursion is in a very similar vein to Dark Matter, but focuses on time travel rather than hopping between dimensions. It’s perhaps much more cerebral than Dark Matter, requiring the reader’s utmost attention to keep up with the twisty narrative. However, if Dark Matter season 1 proves to be a long-term success, then a Recursion TV show would likely be a hit too.

Why A Blake Crouch Sci-Fi Universe Would Work

The isolated nature of Crouch’s stories means they’re strong enough to survive the end of a crossover

One of the biggest issues with modern multiverse sagas is that the crossovers happen far too often. While it can be an exciting moment, using the plot device too often can reduce its efficacy and become less impactful each time. What tends to happen is that the crossovers happen more and more frequently, as standalone stories don’t tend to hold the attention of modern audiences after the possibility of a broader narrative has been confirmed. A universe built on Crouch’s novels could avoid this mistake by having his stories converge far less frequently.

To address the superpowered elephant in the room, so many multiverse stories tend to be set in similar locations, like different versions of New York City. Crouch’s novels don’t have that issue. For instance, Dark Matter is set entirely in different versions of Chicago. So, it leaves the rest of the world open for exploration. Similarly, his other books don’t tend to favor a singular location. So, all the live-action adaptations could remain in isolation and only cross paths when absolutely necessary. Dark Matter is the beginning, but it may not be the end.