Is Alice In the ‘Luther: The Fallen Sun’ Movie?

Great news for anyone who missed the golden era of TV: Luther is back.

Luther: The Fallen Sun, which began streaming on Netflix today, is a continuation of the award-winning BBC crime drama that ran for five seasons, from 2010 to 2019. Idris Elba returns as the title character, Luther, a grizzled, genius detective who doesn’t always play by the rules. This time around, his discretions land him in jail. Unfortunately, there’s a mad serial killer on the loose, and Luther is the only man who can hunt him down. Fortunately, Luther isn’t going to let a little thing like prison bars prevent him from bringing down the hammer of justice.

Directed by Jaime Payne, and written by Luther series creator Neil Cross, this is a crime thriller movie that can be enjoyed both by diehard fans of the series, and total newcomers who’ve never watched an episode. That said, the true fans will no doubt be hoping to see some familiar faces from the TV show. Namely, fans want to see Luther’s longtime nemesis and everyone’s favorite psychopath, Alice Morgan, played by Ruth Wilson.

So is Alice in Luther: The Fallen Sun?

Is Alice in the Netflix Luther movie, Luther: The Fallen Sun?

No. Alice is not in Luther: The Fallen Sun, nor is her name even mentioned in the Netflix Luther movie.

Though disappointing, this likely won’t surprise fans, given that Ruth Wilson’s character was killed off in the Season 5 finale of Luther. It was a fairly definitive death, given that she fell off a building ledge and crashed to the ground. But some fans held onto the hope that Alice Morgan was still alive. After all, Alice has already returned from the dead once, when she was proclaimed dead in Season 4, only to show up, alive and well, in the Season 5 premiere.

Unfortunately, it seems, Alice really is dead this time. Again, there is no mention of her in the new Luther movie. Instead, Luther has a new antagonist to worry about: A rich, deranged serial killer played by Andy Serkis.

In a press notes interview with Luther creator Neil Cross, who wrote the screenplay for the movie, he said he wanted to make a movie that could be enjoyed both by fans of the original, and by new viewers alike, which is why he chose to limit the number of returning characters. “I would have considered it discourteous to risk overwhelming new viewers with too many returning characters,” Cross said.

The only familiar face in the movie, other than Luther himself, is Martin Schenk, the former boss and friend of Luther played by Dermot Crowley. But, Cross said, he’s not ruling out the possibility of bringing Alice back for future movies. When asked if Ruth Wilson might someday appear in the Luther universe again, Cross said. “Well, we’re an extended family and Ruth Wilson [who plays Alice] is an important part of it. It’s a family I care about very much. So… who knows?”

Aha! So even though you won’t see Alice in Luther: The Fallen Sun, it’s possible that John Luther and Alice Morgan may, someday, meet again. That said, there are currently no official plans for any future Luther films. We’ll just have to wait and see.