Archive 81 is currently one of the most streamed Netflix titles. The horror series is about the archivist Dan (Mamoudou Athie), who is given the job of restoring old video cassettes that were almost completely destroyed in a fire. On the tapes he finds recordings of the documentary filmmaker Melody (Dina Shihabi). She was doing research in a residential building against a dangerous sect and disappeared years ago… The end of the series leaves a few questions unanswered. But what are the chances that it will Archive 81 Season 2 will give?
Archive 81 Season 2: This is the current status
Netflix has not yet confirmed that there will be Archive 81 Season 2. However, the chances for another season are very good. There are three good reasons for this:
- First, the series was never made into a limited miniseries.
- Secondly, the ending of the first season is open ended and has a cliffhanger.
- Third, “Archive 81” is based on a podcast of the same name (English language) that already has three seasons.
So far, the series has bravely held its place in the top 10 most-streamed Netflix series. So we know there are quite a few fans waiting for another season. This certainly does not go unnoticed by Netflix.
But how could it go on? What does the ending tell us and what conclusions can we draw from the podcast?
This is the Archive 81 Podcast
“Archive 81 is a found footage horror podcast about rituals, stories and sounds.”
This is how the makers Daniel Powell and Marc Sollinger describe their podcast. In addition to three seasons, there are also some additional episodes that were released between 2016 and 2019.
In the podcast, too, archivist Dan and a woman named Melody deal with a cult. However, the first podcast season differs from the first series season, especially towards the end. It is possible that a potential “Archive 81” season 2 also only takes elements from the podcast. In any case, it might be worth listening to the podcast and delving deeper into the created world of Powell and Sollinger.
However, it should be said: knowledge of English is necessary. You can download the transcripts of the respective episodes for easier understanding or, if you are hearing impaired, also for free.
What does the ending reveal about Season 2?
Warning, there are spoilers for Archive 81 Season 1 starting here. Don’t read any further if you don’t want to know how the story ends.
Dan understands that both Melody and Samuel (Evan Jonigkeit) didn’t perish in the Visser Fire but live in another world. He decides to open the gate to this world and save Melody. “Bobbi” (Jacqueline Antaramian) surprisingly helps him. In truth, however, this woman is Melody’s biological mother. She thought she could have kept her daughter safe when she gave her away. But she could not take the bloodline and thus the inherited destiny from Melody.
It turns out: Bobbi and Melody are so-called Baldung. These try to prevent the powerful demon Kaelego from entering our world.
Dan manages to enter the other world. There he finds Melody. When they escape back together, something goes wrong and while the young woman manages to escape, Dan remains behind in the parallel world. In the last scene we see him awakening in a hospital bed in 1994 – a few days after the Visser fire. TV is reporting the death of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain and the twin towers of the World Trade Center are still standing…
In a possible second season “Archive” it will certainly be about Dan wanting to come back to his world and his actual present. Bobbi and daughter Melody, as well as Dan’s friend Mark (Matt McGorry), will probably also try to get him back. Maybe Dan can find out what caused the fire that killed his whole family.
More Netflix titles
While you’re waiting to see if and how “Archive 81” Season 2 will continue, you can enjoy numerous other titles on the streaming service: We can recommend these three Netflix mini-series, for example. “You” season 4 is already confirmed. You can find out how to proceed here. There will also be “Cobra Kai” Season 5.
Sources: Archive81.com, own research