Will there be an Unforgotten season 6? Latest news and speculation

If you're a longtime fan of the ITV show, you'll know that it follows the same intriguing format with each season telling the story of one cold case and exploring how the guest cast of characters weaves into the crime.

This time around, new DCI lead Jessica James (Sinéad Keenan) joined the team in the wake of Cassie Stuart's (Nicola Walker) death, and it was as much a season about grief as it was an exploration of the mystery murder case at hand.

Although the season ended on a final note in regards to the crime, there's definitely more scope for a potential sixth season. There are always more cold cases for this team to solve, after all.

With that, read on for everything you need to know about a potential season 6 of Unforgotten.

Will there be an Unforgotten season 6?

As of now, we don't know. We'd obviously hope for season 6, especially seeing as Sinéad Keenan has just joined the cast as DCI Jessica James, but we'll have to wait for ITV to confirm with any renewal news.

We do know, though, that series creator Chris Lang does have ideas for a possible season 6. On the set of Unforgotten season 5, he teased to RadioTimes.com and other press that the dynamic between DCI James and DI Khan (Sanjeev Bhaskar) could very well be making a return.

Lang said: "Certainly, if they asked me, I’d do a season 6. I've got a season 6 in my head. So yeah, it's down to the broadcaster, whether they asked me to do it.

"It's a unique show, in that it's got a format that is self-contained, but with a certain degree of serialised elements through the characters. And as long as people keep watching it, and we can keep making it well… at the point where either I don't feel I can contribute to it, or make it better, obviously I'd stop. But at the moment we haven't hit that point yet."

Lang continued: "It's incredibly difficult to sit down and create it from a blank page, so you need huge reserves of energy and enthusiasm to push you through creating six episodes. And it’s often very emotionally draining stories that you're telling as well, which require lots of research into really dark areas.

"So as long as I have the appetite to keep doing that, and as long as the audience keep coming back to it, there's no reason why I couldn't keep going on."

Unforgotten season 6 release date speculation

Seeing as Unforgotten season 5 has hit our screens early this 2023, we'd only hope that next year would kick off in a similar fashion with season 6 landing sometime in early 2024.

For season 5, Keenan was only revealed as the next lead when filming kicked off in March 2022 so knowing that the filming and production process was less than a year, there could be hope for the ITV drama to return to our screens sooner than we think. Watch this space.

Unforgotten season 6 cast speculation

We'd obviously hope for our leading characters, Sinéad Keenan's DCI Jessica 'Jessie' James and Sanjeev Bhaskar's DI Sunny Khan, to return — not least because their initially rocky dynamic petered out to be a very heartwarming working relationship.

Of course, we'd hope that their investigating team would be reunited to tackle more cold cases, with Jordan Long as DS Murray Boulting, Carolina Main as DS Fran Lingley, Pippa Nixon as DC Karen Willets and Georgia Mackenzie as pathologist Dr Leanne Balcombe.

Season 5 also saw the absence of Lewis Reeves as DC Jake Collier because he had a schedule clash with his other work on Sky comedy Rosie Molloy Gives Up Everything. He told RadioTimes.com that while both productions did try and make it work, a solution couldn't be found. However, he did tease that if there were to be a season 6, he would love to return.

He said: "I've been doing [Unforgotten] for about four or five years now, and it’ll be the first one without Nicola [Walker], so it was a tough one to take.

"I spoke to Chris Lang, the writer, and Andy Wilson, the director, and if it goes for season 6, I'm sure they'll welcome DC Jake Collier back – [that’s] what I’m hearing, so fingers crossed," he explained.

Elsewhere, we'd likely see the return of Andrew Lancel as Jessica's husband Steve James as the pair attempt to work through the problems in their marriage. Similarly, there's the big question of whether Michelle Bonnard would return as Sal, after her and Sunny's tumultuous time in season 5.

Unforgotten is always home to a guest cast of amazing talent who star as people somehow involved in the case, so it's anyone's guess who could also be guest starring in any upcoming seasons of the ITV drama.

What could Unforgotten season 6 be about?

Please only continue reading if you've watched Unforgotten season 5 as this upcoming section contains full spoilers for the finale.

Season 5 centred around the murder case of Precious Falade and it was revealed in a surprise finale twist that actually, the police team could be putting away a (somewhat) innocent man, Lord Tony Hume (Ian McElhinney).

While he confessed and was arrested for Joseph Bell's murder (and was also charged for the 57-year-old rape of Ebele's mother), Jay (Rhys Yates) revealed to his grandmother Ebele (Martina Laird) that he lied to the police to make up for all the bad that Tony had brought to their family's life. So, could Tony return for season 6?

While there usually isn't any criminal case overlap throughout the seasons, wilder things have been done in dramas. Although Tony did seem to be remorseful (and obviously confessed to the crime knowing that he didn't shoot Joseph), could a life in prison lead to him withdrawing his confession or perhaps using his powerful connections to get him out of prison? Will Tony come to be DCI Jessica James's thorn in her side? We'll just have to wait and see.

What we do know is that a potential season 6 will naturally pick up probably with the personal dramas of both Jessica and Sunny. Season 5's first episode revealed that Jessica's husband Steve had had an affair, and then it was later revealed that he had an emotional affair with Jessica's sister.

While we don't know what Jessica decides at the end of season 5, Steve has moved back in and is sleeping in one of their son's rooms but is keen to make things work. Jessica's mother even reminds her that Steve loves her, so it very well could be water under the bridge for season 6.

Sunny also had a hard time of it throughout season 5, clearly struggling to vocalise his grief after the death of Cassie. He was struggling so much that we even saw him pen a resignation letter in the first episode.

Sal told him she was pregnant but then later in the season, sadly suffered a miscarriage and said it put things into perspective. Sunny doesn't want children and she does, so she revealed that she would be taking a break and moving back home with her mother for now. Is it the end of the road for Sal and Sunny?

Is there a trailer for Unforgotten season 6?

No there isn't, seeing as season 6 is yet to actually be confirmed. But how about a re-watch of the season 5 trailer to whet your appetite for now? Watch it below.

Unforgotten season 5 airs every Monday at 9pm on ITV1, with the new season available to stream as well as all four previous seasons on ITVX.

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