Death in Paradise has a two-parter coming up this season that is so "dark" that members of the cast were even questioning if it belonged in the series.
The BBC One procedural has never shied away from unconventional cases — its murders have veered from treasure-hunting to local political races. But in season eight, things are going to get especially unusual.
Digital Spy recently spoke with the cast ahead of next week's launch, and new arrival Shyko Amos — who is replacing Danny John-Jules on the squad — hinted that the as-yet-unconfirmed topic for this two-parter turned heads on set.
"It's a real departure from what Death in Paradise does," she told us. "It's dark, it's really dark. That was the thing on-set, 'Is this too dark? Is this even Death in Paradise?' It's really intense."
Ardal O'Hanlon felt a bit more confident that this storyline fit within the mould of Death in Paradise, but still warned fans to brace themselves for a "grittier" case than they're used to from the show.
"I’ve only seen little snatches of it," he told us. "But yeah, when we were doing it, definitely there was a sense that the tone had shifted slightly. I think it’s still very much Death in Paradise.
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"But because the theme is a little bit darker and because it’s a little bit closer to home in terms of the storyline, we’re all a bit more invested in it, maybe. It’s quite startling and quite dramatic what happens. So yeah, it is, I suppose, a bit darker.
"And I suppose it’s shot slightly differently as well, and in possibly a slightly grittier style than the normal Death in Paradise style."
Death in Paradise returns to BBC One on Thursday, January 10 at 9pm.
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Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.
