‘Tokyo Vice’ Renewed for Season 2 at HBO Max

HBO Max has booked a return trip to Japan, with a Season 2 renewal for the crime drama Tokyo Vice.

Loosely inspired by American journalist Jake Adelstein’s non-fiction, first-hand account of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police beat, the series — filmed on location in Tokyo and which debuted in April — follows Adelstein’s (played by Ansel Elgort) daily descent into the neon-soaked underbelly of Tokyo in the late 1990s, “where nothing and no one is truly what or who they seem.”

Ken Watanabe co-stars as Hiroto Katagiri, an organized crime detective and father figure to Adelstein, who helps the reporter navigate his precarious beat.

The Season 1 cast also included Rinko Kikuchi (Invasion), Rachel Keller (Legion), Ella Rumpf (Austria-Germany’s Freud), Hideaki Ito (Boku no yabai tsuma), Show Kasamatsu (Love You as the World Ends) and Tomohisa Yamashita (Japan’s Code Blue).

In a statement, Sarah Aubrey, Head of Original Content for HBO Max, said, “We could not be more excited to bring the passionate fans of the show another season to continue this intriguing and suspenseful crime story set in one of the most vibrant and beautiful cities in the world.”

Added series creator (and Tony Award-winning playwright) J.T. Rogers, “Writing and then making the first season of Tokyo Vice with this remarkable group of artists was a matchless experience. So I’m over the moon that we get to keep going. I can’t wait to get back to work in Tokyo with our brilliant cast and crew. Stay tuned: there are twists and turns in the tale to come!”