Sorry 'Bodyguard' Fans, Richard Madden Says Season 2 Won't Happen Any Time Soon

Richard Madden solidified his stance as an actor worth his salt through his performance in the British television drama series 'Bodyguard'. Written by Jed Mercurio and produced by World Productions for BBC, the six-part series introduced us to Police Sergeant David Budd, the troubled war veteran assigned to protect the Home Secretary.

The 'Game Of Thrones' actor, increased the size of his fan following and also went on to win the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Drama Series through the stellar work he portrayed in the show. Subsequently, he sent out a very clear message to Hollywood that there's a new front runner in town. 

So does this mean that we'll get to see more of him as the protection officer soon? Unfortunately not. The 31-year-old dashed our hopes of the next installment of 'Bodyguard' coming to our screens in the near future in an interview with Daily Mail.

Madden revealed that while a second season is "not an impossibility", it would take at least another year before it becomes a reality. He attributed the long break to all those involved with the project needing a break. "Budd needs a break a sort his life out. You just can’t slap a script together and throw it onto the screen. It has to be carefully thought through. First of all, what is the story?", said the star.

"What's the next step for a character like David Budd? The thinking is for all of us to have a break and come back to it fresh maybe in a year or so. I enjoyed playing him and I think the public liked him. We'll get together and see what's there," he added.

The Scottish actor stressed that everyone attached to the project, including writer Jed Mercurio and the production team, had "all expressed a desire to do more Bodyguards but there needs to be a break."

Damn. This means that we will have to wait till 2020 at least to see what the showrunners have in store for the dashing David Budd. 

The show which starred Keeley Hawes as the controversial Home Secretary became BBC's biggest hit in years. 10.4 million viewers tuned in for the season finale, the highest audience for a UK show in 2018, apart from the World Cup.

Moreover, when iPlayer views were taken into account, the number hit 17 million, which is the highest any drama episode has scored since modern records began in 2002.

Richard has previously spoken about how the show's immense success had taken him by surprise. "It's just thrilling that a little show that didn't have a huge budget, and just had a bunch of actors working really hard... has done well," said the star.

"We just thought we were making a show we want to," Madden added at the time. An even bigger surprise for the 'Bastille Day' actor was his Golden Globe win. In a category that saw him facing off against Matthew Rhys, Jason Bateman, Stephan James, and Billy Porter, bagging the award is no mean feat.

Talking to Entertainment Tonight backstage at the award ceremony, moments after picking up the prestigious award, the Richard confessed that the experience felt rather unreal to him. "I definitely just stopped and kind of shriveled for a minute 'cause I -- it doesn't feel real," he admitted.

The star credited the show's success to the exemplary writing of Mercurio. "The characters are all in this gray zone, this moral ambiguity of not being good or bad, that's what makes this show really interesting to watch. Everybody should be human. No one's kind of defined by one thing", he said.

And though he again stressed on the need for a break, he promised there have been "lots of conversations happening" about the future of the show. "We're talking about it. We're going to see what happens over the coming year. I think the character needs a break," said the star.

"I think he had a tough couple of months during the show. We'll see what happens," the 'Lady Chatterley's Lover' star added. Putting into context his Golden Globe win, Madden expressed optimism that he may now finally feel like he belongs in the industry.

Speaking about it, he said: "As an actor, you're always questioning yourself and you're always trying to work out if you're good enough or deserving and most of the time, you always have the fear that someone's going to tap you on the shoulder and say, 'Hey, I found you out. You're rubbish. You can't do it."

"So this is was something for myself being like, 'Hey, look, people think you can do it so you have to believe it too'," the actor added. His Golden Globe win comes amid rumors that he is being considered for the coveted role of James Bond after Daniel Craig bids adieu to the character.

Addressing these reports, Madden said: "Look, it's very flattering to be involved in that conversation. There are some films to be made, so who knows what will happen in the future." Rumors or not, we are totally rooting for the Glasgow born actor to sip on a martini or two, shaken not stirred.