Filming has officially wrapped on the third instalment. **CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR SEASON 2**
After Life lives on, as the smash-hit show is returning following Ricky Gervais’s decision to make a third season of one of his TV projects for the first time ever.
Filming is now complete on the third instalment of the sobering sitcom, after several photos were released of the cast hard at work shooting in Hemel Hempstead and the many other locations where After Life is filmed.
The images teased the return of creator/star Gervais as grieving widow Tony Johnson as well as many of the fan-favourite supporting characters – ahead of their final appearance as series three will definitely be the last.
“The audience think they want another one but they don’t know, they’re not sure, so you’ve got to be careful,” Gervais explained.
There’s still plenty to wrap up however before the show’s finale however, including Tony’s potential budding romance with nurse Emma (Ashley Jensen), his unresolved feelings following the death of his father (David Bradley) and, of course, the prospect of Tony allowing himself a happy ending.
However, we might not have to wait long to find all that out, as with filming now finished we might just see After Life return to the land of the living by the end of the year. Fingers crossed!
Here’s everything you need to know about After Life season three.
After Life season 3 release date
After Life was renewed for a third season less than two weeks after the second was released, when the show shot to the top of Netflix’s internal ranking chart in numerous regions.
Ricky Gervais confirmed on Twitter that series two drew more viewers in its first week than series one, and the show has now been viewed by 80 million people.
In April 2021, Netflix revealed that filming had officially started on the next batch of episodes, posting a picture of an ecstatic Gervais holding a clapperboard outdoors on a remarkably sunny day.
NEWS: After Life S3 is officially in production, and @rickygervais looks *quite* happy about it. pic.twitter.com/AezOsoM0eL
— Netflix UK & Ireland (@NetflixUK) April 19, 2021
In May 2021 Netflix released some behind-the-scenes images from filming, teasing the return of Penelope Wilton (Anne), Joe Wilkinson (Pat), Tony Way (Lenny), Jo Hartley (June) and of course dog Anti.
Some photos from the set of After Life S3, and yes – don’t worry – the dog is back!!! @rickygervais pic.twitter.com/wogwxCGhXp
— Netflix UK & Ireland (@NetflixUK) May 13, 2021
By June, filming had wrapped, with Gervais taking to Twitter to mark the end of the 35-day-shoot.
Day 35 on #AfterLife3
— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) June 4, 2021
And that’s a wrap ???? pic.twitter.com/Acgqnu2rj1
The second season of After Life wrapped in October 2019 and launched on Netflix six months later – so it’s feasible that the third season could premiere in December 2021 or early 2022.
Unlike his previous comedies The Office, Extras and Derek, which all wrapped up after two series and a special (or pair of specials), Gervais has always been open to the prospect of going further with After Life.
He told RadioTimes.com and other press: “For the first time ever, I would do a series three, because the world’s so rich, I love the characters, I love all the actors in it, I love my character, I love the town, I love the themes… I love the dog!
“So I would do a third, but it’s got to be a real demanded-for encore. I’m not gonna just do it. I wouldn’t do it for the sake of it. I wouldn’t do it just to get paid, or because they [Netflix] want another three hours on their platform. It’s got to be that people really want more.”
Read more: Ricky Gervais says After Life was harder to write than The Office
However, Gervais has signed a multi-year deal with Netflix that includes two more projects following After Life season three – so we may well see the comedian’s unique brand of humour return in a brand new sitcom.
After Life season 3 cast
!["After]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2020/04/after-life-season-2-7881158.jpeg?quality=90&resize=619%2C413" "\"After")
You can expect all of your After Life cast favourites to return for any third season, including:
- Ricky Gervais (Tony)
- Penelope Wilton (Anne)
- Ashley Jensen (Emma)
- Tom Basden (Matt)
- Tony Way (Lenny)
- David Earl (Brian)
- Joe Wilkinson (“Postman” Pat)
- Mandeep Dhillon (Sandy)
- Jo Hartley (June)
- Roisin Conaty (Roxy)
- Diane Morgan (Kath)
- Ethan Lawrence (James)
Back in July 2020, Gervais told GoldDerby that he wasn’t sure if Tony’s relationship with Emma would have a happy ending. “That’s the tricky bit, really, because he’s sort of addicted to grief, as he said, because he knows where he is with it, because hope lets him down too much.”
Meanwhile, Mandeep Dillon told RadioTimes.com and other press that she’d be keen for her character to “be on the up” in a third season after being very much “on a low” in the second as she struggled with some family issues. “I think it’s important to show that, and it’s great that Ricky allowed me to show that, because so many people – we go through that all our lives. We go up and down.
“[But] I’d like her to have a few wins. I don’t know what wins they would be. It’s whatever Ricky decides, I guess. But it’d be nice for her to start seeing a change in her life.”
Comedian Joe Wilkinson has also talked of his hopes for a happy ending for Pat and Roxy, amid increasing speculation that the two characters could have a baby.
“I think it might be nice if Pat and Roxy are solid. You know what I mean? If they had a really lovely relationship,” Wilkinson told Digital Spy.
He added: “And a lottery win. Yeah, five numbers and a bonus ball – about 200 grand. How about that? That’s fair, isn’t it?”
Supporting characters who could return include Tracy Ann Oberman as the no-nonsense Rebecca, Paul Kaye as the deranged psychiatrist, and Colin Hoult as wannabe showbiz superstar Ken.
Season two also introduced Peter Egan as Paul, owner of the Tambury Gazette and a potential love interest for Anne, another character who could potentially return in future episodes.
!["Kerry]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2020/04/After-Life-2-Kerry-Godliman-Ricky-Gervais_Netflix-1-65d56a1.jpg?quality=90&crop=22px%2C25px%2C1884px%2C1255px&resize=620%2C413" "\"After")
Gervais has also said that, even as time moves on, Tony’s late wife Lisa (Kerry Godliman) will remain an “integral” part of the series.
“It’s such a rich vein: the wife he’s lost, and all the guilt, and moving on, and her vs. someone else… it’s like, who could compare with this perfect wife?” he said. “She’s never gonna make a mistake… so [it’s] all those things.”
It’s unclear if David Bradley would be part of a third season of After Life after his character, Tony’s father Ray, passed away in season two – though there’s definitely the potential for him to reappear in home video footage, a la Lisa.
In April 2021, comedian and actor Kate Robbins revealed she’d joined the cast of After Life, though details of her character remain under wraps.
So pleased to announce I’ve joined the amazing cast of #Afterlife3
— Kate Robbins (@KateRobbins) April 20, 2021
First day filming today with @rickygervais
And what a laugh it was! pic.twitter.com/E2o477yWyV
And, of course, we’re hoping for lots more of Anti as Tony’s dog Brandy!
After Life season 3 trailer
There’s no trailer just yet, as Netflix has a habit of saving trailers until shortly before release.
The season two trailer (see below) dropped a mere two weeks before launch, so any teaser for the next instalment likely won’t be with us until late 2021 at the earliest.
After Life season 2 is streaming now on Netflix – check out our lists of the best series on Netflix and the best movies on Netflix, or see what else is on with our TV Guide.