Will ‘Snowpiercer’ Return For Season 2? Cancellation, Renewal Details Before Sunday Finale

The “Snowpiercer” Season 1 finale airs Sunday, and fans are already wondering if that’s the train’s last stop. Luckily, TNT has already revealed whether the show is canceled or renewed.

It turns out that cancellation was never a concern. “Snowpiercer” was renewed for Season 2 a full year before it premiered on TV. “We believe in the longevity of this series and that audiences will be amazed by the fantastical world that brings to life such relevant social, political and environmental issues,” TBS and TNT general manager Brett Weitz said in a statement last year.

While an early renewal occasionally gets retracted if a show performs badly, that’s certainly not the case here. “Snowpiercer” is averaging 1.25 million viewers overall with .32 in the 18-49 demographic. It’s pulling in more audience members than either “Animal Kingdom” or “Claws,” TNT’s other hit shows, according to TV Series Finale.

“Snowpiercer” Season 2 already started filming. Unfortunately, they were not quite finished when production had to shut down as social distancing and lockdown orders went into effect.

“We were almost done with Season 2 and then we got shut down,” actor Annalise Basso, who plays LJ Folger, told Inverse. “But, I got a call from the executive producer the other day. I can't give too many details, but I'll just say it's good news. We're just waiting on an official start date for Season 3 and hoping to find some time to go back and finish Season 2.”

Inspired by the graphic novels and 2013 movie, "Snowpiercer" depicts a post-apocalyptic world where Earth is a frozen tundra, and the last of humanity live on a perpetually-moving train. Former homicide detective Andre Layton (Daveed Diggs) is a low-class passenger who is allowed to move between classes when he is called on to investigate a murder.

Showrunner and executive producer Graeme Manson said he envisioned “Snowpiercer” as being at least a three-season series, but it could go on longer if the audience sticks with it.

“You have a loose concept of three seasons, and an end point. I pitched what an end point could be, and I pitched it as three very loose seasons,” he told Collider. “But as with ‘Orphan Black,’ the middle can expand. You can keep the same end points and have it turn into five acts, or five seasons. It’s mostly about having an end point in mind, as well as an end point for the first season, and then who knows how long the middle will be. You just try to build up these characters, so that when you come back in the second season, they’re carrying it themselves. The world now exists on its own, too.”

The “Snowpiercer” Season 1 finale airs Sunday on TNT. Season 2 does not have a premiere date yet.