American Rust is moving down the road to Amazon Freevee for its second season. After the Showtime series received the ax after only one season, the streaming television service formerly known as IMDb TV, snatched it up to air exclusively on their platform. The renewal will be a sigh of relief for Dan Futterman (Capote) and Adam Rapp (The Sound Inside) who will be given the chance to continue telling their story about the gritty Rust Belt town in Pennsylvania. Emmy Award-winning actor, Jeff Daniels will return to star alongside Golden Globe winner, Maura Tierney.
The first season of the crime drama centered around the life of Del Harris (Daniels), the chief of police in a small, southwestern town in Pennsylvania. Life gets flipped upside down for Harris when the son of the woman he loves (Tierney), becomes the main suspect in a gruesome murder. Unsure of what to believe, Del needs to make decisions about the lengths he’ll go to in order to protect the young man. The series is based on Philipp Meyer’s beloved novel of the same name and does a deep dive into the hopes and dreams of Americans who — no matter how hard they work — will never achieve the “American Dream.” No plot details surrounding the second season have been released, but we do know that production is planning to get cameras rolling later this year.
As for the series’ renewal, Daniels commented:
“I’m grateful to Amazon Freevee for giving us the chance to make Season Two of American Rust. Set inside a struggling American small town, our authentic, realistically told story is built for streaming. The movies they don’t make anymore are being made as series at places like Amazon Freevee. It’s where I want to be.”
And Daniels is right, there isn’t a show that focuses on small town America quite like American Rust does. Adapting a series from a well-loved book is a great way to pick a creative story and drive up viewership. And (as someone born and raised in this area of Pennsylvania), it’s a story that’s often overlooked by the lens of Hollywood as a run-down steel town with no tales to tell. That being said, the first season didn’t necessarily draw in a lot of love from critics, earning a 28% critical approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and mixed reviews from its viewers.
If Season 2 of American Rust can pick up the pace and draw in more audiences, it stands to be a hit for Amazon Freevee. With the talent backing it in writing, production, and acting, along with the basis of a great storyline, we’re cheering the series on. As of right now, no release day has been revealed, but stay tuned to Collider for more information.
