M Night Shyamalan
Director M. Night Shyamalan poses for portrait during the 2015 Comic-Con International Convention in San Diego, California July 9, 2015. Reuters/Mario Anzuoni

M. Night Shyamalan is popular for movies like “Signs,” “The Sixth Sense,” “The Happening,” “The Last Airbender” and “Split.” What many do not know is that he also ventured into television. In 2013, Shyamalan worked alongside Chad Hodge, creator of “The Playboy Club,” to adapt the book “The Wayward Pines” onto the small screen. The show debuted in 2015.

The first five episodes of “Wayward Pines” focused on the first novel “Pines,” with the next five episodes featuring their live version of the next two novels “Wayward” and “The Last Town.” At first, FOX planned to cancel the show after a single season but, surprisingly, they gave the show another run with an almost new cast and crew joining in. Chad Hodge stepped down as showrunner, and Mark Friedman took over his duties.

Screen Rant says that since the trilogy was already adapted in the first season, they had to come up with almost completely original ideas for the second season. Now that talks are underway to renew the show for a third season, it looks like this will feature entirely new content.

When FOX Entertainment president David Madden was asked if the series is officially dead, he denied this, saying “we don’t know yet.” He also added that he and Shyamalan are in discussions about the possibilities of a third season. They are also exploring story and casting ideas, to which they have not made decisions yet, Deadline reports.

News of “Wayward Pines” coming back, however, is not exactly new. In 2016, FOX CEO Dana Walden gave hope that the show could return for season 3. Back then, Walden hinted at a very convincing plan for a third season that she liked, but she was also waiting for the bigger picture to form.

Last season ended with the Abbies about to overrun the town, and with almost everybody about to enter a second cryogenic sleep. If they decide to renew the show for a third season, the show could reinvent itself in the same manner as it did between the first two seasons. Viewers might have observed how Matt Dillon’s character had to give way to that of Jason Patric’s. In the same manner, there is an infinite number of directions this show can take for a third season.

"Wayward Pines" airs on the FOX in the US and in Foxtel in Australia. Season 2 ended on July 27, 2016.

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