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The story of The Watcher isn’t over. Netflix has announced a surprise renewal for The Watcher Season 2 after the success of the once-limited series’ first season, based on the true story of 657 Boulevard in Westfield, New Jersey. Many fans are excited to see Ryan Murphy’s creepy mystery continue. However, others wonder how Netflix plans to continue the saga. Here are a few routes The Watcher Season 2 could take.

An open front door in The Watcher Season 1
‘The Watcher’ Season 2 has been greenlit. | Eric Liebowitz/Netflix

Netflix has renewed ‘The Watcher’ for season 2

As Variety reported, Netflix opted to renew The Watcher for a second season along with two more installments of Murphy’s other Netflix series, Monster. Season 1 of Monster focused on Jeffrey Dahmer, but subsequent seasons will “focus on other monstrous figures who have impacted society,” Netflix shared. The Watcher Season 2’s plot remains under wraps.

“Audiences can’t take their eyes off Monster and The Watcher,” Netflix’s head of global TV, Bela Bajaria, said in a statement. “The creative team of Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan on Monster along with Eric Newman on The Watcher are masterful storytellers who captivated audiences all over the world. The back-to-back force of these two series is due to Ryan’s distinct original voice which created cultural sensations and we are thrilled to continue telling stories in the Monster and Watcher universes.”

The Watcher Season 1 followed the Brannock family as they moved into a new house, 657 Boulevard, and received disturbing letters from someone known as “The Watcher.” The author of the letters claimed to have watched over 657 Boulevard for generations. Each letter became more and more threatening, causing the Brannocks to sell their home out of fear.

What will ‘The Watcher’ Season 2 be about?

The Watcher Season 1 left the story open-ended with plenty of loose threads. Viewers never learned the identity of The Watcher. Additionally, many details surrounding the Brannocks’ unusual neighbors remain unclear. Season 2 could pick up where season 1 left off, perhaps with a new family at 657 Boulevard. Of course, it could be tricky to avoid recycling the plot of season 1.

Many fans felt frustrated with season 1’s lack of answers. Season 2 could reveal who is behind the letters and play into some of the real-life theories about The Watcher case. Even if the Brannocks aren’t involved in season 2, neighbors like Pearl (Mia Farrow), Mo (Margo Martindale), and Jasper (Terry Kinney) could return. The Watcher Season 2 could even look at the story from the eyes of The Watcher themself.

Alternatively, The Watcher could become another one of Murphy’s beloved anthologies. Perhaps this one would focus on other infamous real-life cases of stalking. The star-studded cast, which includes Jennifer Coolidge, Naomi Watts, Bobby Cannavale, and Christopher McDonald, could return as different characters.

The real case of The Watcher remains unsolved

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‘The Watcher’: Where’s the Broaddus Family Today?

Continuing the original story of The Watcher would likely mean going down a completely fictionalized path. In real life, The Watcher was never identified. New residents have moved into 657 Boulevard in real life, but there have been no reports of letters.

Of course, many details in season 1 were fictionalized from the start. The real family, the Broadduses, never moved into 657 Boulevard, but they received letters while renovating the home. Previous owners also did not report any letters, except one received by the Woods family. With this in mind, it’s reasonable to wonder if Netflix wouldn’t mind going entirely fictional in season 2.

The Watcher Season 1 is now streaming on Netflix. Stay tuned to Showbiz Cheat Sheet for updates on season 2.