‘Kin’ has been a major hit for Irish broadcaster RTÉ
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One of Irish TV’s biggest success stories in recent years, the hit crime drama Kin had faced an uncertain future – but is now set for a comeback after three years.
The series, set in the ganglands of Dublin, originally aired on RTÉ in Ireland, and was shown in the UK on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
In 2024, shortly after Kin aired its second season, Canadian corporation Bron Studios, one of the production companies responsible for creating the series, declared bankruptcy. The announcement threw plans for a third series into limbo, with a number of contradictory reports emerging over the status of a prospective new season.
Now, it has been confirmed that Kin will in fact be returning, with Emmett J Scanlan, who plays the villain Jimmy Kinsella on the show, giving fans a much-sought-after update on the progress.
Addressing followers in an Instagram video, the actor said: “This has been years in the making and I can't believe and I'm utterly grateful that I get to finally say: Day one, season three of Kin is now.”
“The feeling is good,” he added, before speculating the new season may be “the best one yet”.
Emmett acts alongside several noteworthy actors on the hit series, with co-stars including Aidan Gillen (The Wire; Game of Thrones), Charlie Cox (Daredevil); Clare Dunne (Herself), and Ciaran Hinds (Game of Thrones).
In its blurb for the forthcoming third season of Kin, RTÉ teased that the new storyline will see “festering rivalries turn inward, and the greatest threat to the family empire become the family itself.”
The Irish Times reported that the BBC has been brought on as a producer on the third season, with Irish company Metropolitan Pictures also involved again, as well as House of Juno, a production company cofounded by Cox.
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Created by screenwriter Peter McKenna, Kin has been RTÉ’s biggest scripted hit since Love/Hate (2010 to 2014).
When the BBC first announced it had acquired streaming rights to Kin in 2023, a press release noted that the series had “aired in Ireland to critical acclaim and has generated record-breaking ratings across both linear and on demand.”
At the time, it had clocked “more than 4 million lifetime streams in Ireland, with the second season averaging a 40 per cent audience share in its Sunday night slot.” The second-season finale was the most-viewed programme of the year in Ireland, outside of sports broadcasting.