One of TV’s best thriller shows returns with new season today

Boasting two major Irish stars, the mystery thriller series is wonderfully stylish, melancholic and genre-defying.

Streaming now on Apple TV, the show sees the Irish Oscar-nominee play John Sugar, a kindly yet enigmatic private detective and movie lover in modern-day Los Angeles. Each season sees him investigating a new case, while also grappling with the disappearance of his sister years ago.

In the new batch of episodes, the PI finds himself hired by on-the-rise local boxer Danny Moon (Jin Ha, Devs) to find his troubled brother, Ji (Raymond Lee, Top Gun: Maverick), who has disappeared after stealing medication from a hospital.

"As the investigation expands into a city-wide conspiracy with sinister intentions, Sugar must reckon with himself to answer the question: How far will he go to do what’s right?" the plot synopsis adds.

It's worth noting, too, that there is more to John Sugar than meets the eye. After all, the tagline for season one read: "Missing person. Mystery person."

Sugar S2 Review:

Having seen all eight episodes of Sugar season two, we are happy to report that the mystery thriller remains one of the most bewitching series currently on TV.

The Irish actor is also at the top of his game. He somehow perfectly embodies the characteristics of a PI from a '40s or '50s noir film, down to the hard-bitten narration, without it feeling like a pastiche. He also imbues John Sugar with a quiet tenderness and warmth, suggesting a richer inner life and making the audience fall in love with the character.

If we had to point out a flaw with Sugar season two, we'd say that Farrell's performance, the style of the series, its supporting characters (including the new-to-the-show Charlotte, played by Irish actress Laura Donnelly, a possible love interest for John), and its world-building (where the story becomes truly genre-defying) all wind up feeling more compelling than the main mystery behind Ji's disappearance.

Still, there's so much to recommend in Sugar S2's eight episodes, nearly all of which are around 40 minutes long. We hope there will be a season three.

Laura Donnelly Interview for Sugar S2:

You can read and watch JOE's full interview with Irish actress Laura Donnelly about Sugar season two below, which has been edited for clarity and length.

While we do not spoil anything about Sugar season two, we do discuss a major twist of the show's first season.

JOE: We tend to start interviews with Irish actors by asking if they have a favourite Irish movie of all time, and if they could say a few words about it. Would you have one?

Laura Donnelly: It's possibly The Company of Wolves by Neil Jordan. 

I mean, there are many, many... but that was one of the earliest ones that, when I was a young teenager, it really grasped my imagination, the fairy tale of it, but also the turning that on its head.

It was a film very much made and geared towards the experience of a young girl or teenage girls. Films like that didn't tend to get made when I was younger. It felt like it was really for me as an audience, and still to this day, I love it. It's a beautiful film. 

JOE: That's a great pick. I love that movie too... Heading into Sugar season two, the mystery of who John Sugar is has been resolved. We know he's not of this earth... What do you think the reveal of John being an alien adds to the show thematically? Because I do think it adds a lot. 

Laura Donnelly: I mean, for a start, it adds a lot of explanation, doesn't it? As to the beauty of this character, the empathy of this character, and the innocence that he carries.

I think that going forward, therefore, it really allows us to view this world through his lens. And I don't think that that kind of lens would be available in any other way, you know? 

The fact that he is not of this planet allows us to really see Los Angeles and our world at large, our humanity, through the eyes of what is essentially a child, really, the innocence of a child. 

I think there's something incredibly beautiful about that. It makes us reflect on, well, what is that view then? Who are we through the lens of somebody who is so innocent? And what does that say about us, and who do we want to be?

Laura Donnelly as Charlotte in Sugar

JOE: You play this new character, Charlotte, who's got a lot of layers. You have great chemistry with Colin Farrell on the show. How did you become involved in the project? I know Colin's a producer on it. I was wondering, was there an Irish connection there? 

Laura Donnelly: I don't know that there was. I know that there was a whole casting discussion. And that they came up with my name.

I went and met with Sam [Catlin - Breaking Bad, Preacher], our showrunner, and we had a coffee, and he explained to me who the character of Charlotte is and the kind of direction that he wanted to take with it. 

It was a very, very easy yes for me. Getting to act opposite Colin... I've been a fan of his work for so long, but I didn't know him personally, but I had heard so many glorious things about what he is like to work with. So, I knew that that was going to be a great experience. 

And knowing that pretty much all of my scenes would be with him... just purely from an acting point of view, getting to work with somebody who's so great at what they do is all the fun of my job. 

And then knowing that I was also going to get to indulge in the kind of the genre aspect of it all, the amazing 30s, 40s costumes, the femme fatale aspect, and getting to shoot in Los Angeles, where I just adore being. 

That all was just what Sam and I had chatted about over coffee. By the end of that coffee, I was like: 'Absolutely, I'm up for this. This is a very easy yes.'

JOE: Growing up as a big film and TV fan in Ireland, it's really cool to see two Irish actors starring in this LA-set noir. And then I was thinking of your career, where you and Ann Skelly were both in The Nevers, and you and Michael Fassbender are going to both be in the Kennedy show on Netflix. Is it fun to have a bit more of Ireland on these big international productions? I imagine it's nice.

Laura Donnelly: Oh, absolutely. I just think any Irish person that you meet in the world, it's like there's so much shorthand there. There's so much that we don't need to introduce to each other. We have a level of understanding of one another immediately that does make it so much fun. 

And it can also really help with a working relationship, because we do have an innate cultural understanding of one another. Of course, that doesn't mean that you can't find your way through those whenever you're working with people who are not from the same country as you. But it can create just some unspoken understandings that create good chemistry. 

Colin Farrell and Laura Donnelly in Sugar

Definitely with Ann and with actors that I've worked with in the theatre... I've done big Irish plays full of Irish actors, and it's kind of amazing to all look around at each other and just think: 'Gosh, we've all made it here.'

I mean, even [on Sugar], there were scenes where Colin and I got to do some really fun things on camera. And we kind of looked at each other, and we're both like: 'How did we end up here, coming from Ireland?' It's just fun. It's really good fun. 

JOE: Amazing. That's great to hear... I'd really urge people to check out Sugar. I also hope we get Werewolf by Night 2 or more Elsa Bloodstone?

Laura Donnelly: Oh, me too! Absolutely. I loved it! Thanks so much. Cheers.

How to watch Sugar season two

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The first episode of Sugar's second season is streaming on Apple TV now. The other seven episodes will follow weekly every Friday through 7 August.