“We will not be doing that” 

Plenty of limited series find a way to somehow stay a lot less limited – Big Little Lies, True Detective and 13 Reasons Why all objectively managed to outstay their welcome after huge viewing figures, and Benedict Cumberbatch has teased that even Patrick Melrose could soon return to the small screen.

Craig Mazin’s limited series, Chernobyl, will “not be doing that” he confirmed at the Emmy Awards this month, where he was present to scoop up more awards for his critically acclaimed project about the nuclear plant meltdown. The series, which aired on Sky Atlantic in the UK, dominated the public conversation for some time after it aired, and Mazin indicated that there are ways to continue boosting that signal without announcing “Chernobyl season 2″.

“We told a story of a place in time and we did it pretty darn well, and it’s time to start thinking about other places and other times …whatever we look at, whether it’s fiction or based on history, it’s relevant to who we are now and what we’re facing.”

Mazin says the series has helped him face how little has changed since the Chernobyl disaster.

“For me as a writer, I became a lot more connected with how similar we all are. Even two traditional enemies. In 1986 and 2019 it’s not that different. The problems then are the same problems now. The consequences now are similar, if not worse.”