Deadline broke the news this morning that three episodes into Cinemax’s incredible new series Warrior, the show has been given a full season 2 renewal! Cinemax confirmed the news a few hours later:
The story continues.#WarriorMAX has been renewed for Season 2. pic.twitter.com/w7nEpCusw6
— Cinemax (@Cinemax) April 24, 2019
I couldn’t be more excited about this news! It’s certainly not unexpected given that the show has received favorable reviews. I’ve particularly appreciated how cast members like Rich Ting, Olivia Cheng, Jason Tobin and Dianne Doan have really taken an active role in promoting and celebrating the show on their various social media outlets. What’s great is that they’re truly interacting with the show’s fans and not just posting pre-written, robotic announcements. Rich Ting in particular has hosted a post-show chat on his Instagram feed after each episode. If you haven’t interacted with Rich on his post-show chat, I highly recommend it.
Episode 4 – “The White Mountain”, airs this Friday and it’s a good one. Possibly even more exciting is that we’re one episode closer to Episode 5 – “The Blood and the Sh*t!” which is probably my favorite hour of television in years. I love that episode so much that I can’t wait to experience it with everyone else. If you’ve been on the fence at all about subscribing to Cinemax to watch Warrior, Do it before Episode 5! You won’t regret it.
If you haven’t already, check out my reviews of the first three episodes:
Episode 2 – “There’s No China in the Bible”
Below is the official announcement from HBO PR:
Cinemax Renews Tong Wars Drama Series WARRIOR, Based on the Writings of Martial Arts Legend Bruce Lee, for Second Season
Following the show’s April 5 premiere, the CINEMAX drama series WARRIOR has been renewed for a second season, it was announced today by Len Amato, president, HBO Films, Miniseries and CINEMAX Programming.
“Bruce Lee’s vision is alive and well,” noted Amato. “WARRIOR combines high-energy martial arts with wit and brains. We’re thrilled to renew such a great show for a second season on CINEMAX.”
Based on the writings of martial arts legend Bruce Lee, WARRIOR was created by and is executive produced by Jonathan Tropper (CINEMAX’s “Banshee”) under Tropper Ink Productions, executive produced by Justin Lin (director of “Star Trek Beyond” and “Fast Five”) for Perfect Storm Entertainment and executive produced by Shannon Lee for Bruce Lee Entertainment.
WARRIOR is a gritty, action-packed crime drama set during the brutal Tong Wars of San Francisco’s Chinatown in the second half of the 19th century. The series follows Ah Sahm (Andrew Koji), a martial arts prodigy who emigrates from China to San Francisco under mysterious circumstances. After proving his worth as a fighter, Ah Sahm becomes a hatchet man for the Hope Wei, one of Chinatown’s most powerful Tongs (Chinese organized crime family).
Among the critical raves for the current season, which airs Fridays (10:00–11:00 p.m. ET/PT) on CINEMAX, Rolling Stone called the show a “lush action drama” where “the legend becomes fact in an unexpected, wonderful way with all of the bells and whistles of modern TV,” while IGN praised WARRIOR for its “efficient, energetic, and enjoyable [ability to bring] American history to vivid life with verve, intelligence, and memorable fists of fury” and “thoughtful political edge,” and Mashable described it as “triumphant” and “a victory.”
Season one credits: WARRIOR is produced for CINEMAX by Perfect Storm Entertainment, Tropper Ink Productions and Bruce Lee Entertainment; created and executive produced by Jonathan Tropper. Justin Lin and Danielle Woodrow executive produce on behalf of Perfect Storm Entertainment. Shannon Lee executive produces for Bruce Lee Entertainment. Executive produced by Brad Kane and co-executive produced by Richard Sharkey. The pilot was directed and executive produced by Assaf Bernstein.
Ron is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of POC Culture. He is a big believer in the power and impact of pop culture and the importance of representation in media.
