After 13 years, Cillian Murphy’s iconic character returns one last time in new Netflix movie

13 years ago, Cillian Murphy first donned his iconic undercut and newsboy cap in Peaky Blinders, a crime drama about a Birmingham gang post-World War I. The show ran for six seasons on BBC and Netflix, with its final episodes airing in 2022. However, Tommy Shelby’s story is not over, as the character returns for the Netflix movie, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man.

Written by series creator Steven Knight, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man jumps ahead to 1940 and finds Tommy in seclusion. However, Tommy can’t hide forever. He’ll have to make his presence known with the Peaky Blinders gang, who are now being run by a familiar face. Remember, it’s Peaky Blinders, so wherever Tommy goes, violence will soon follow.

The ending of Peaky Blinders lays the groundwork for the movie

Where does Tommy go from here?

Credit: Netflix

When we last saw Tommy Shelby, he was riding off into the sunset as a changed man. Tommy nearly kills himself after being diagnosed with a terminal tumor. However, Tommy has been misled and deceived about his health. The doctor who diagnosed Tommy was lying to him.

Had this ruse happened in one of the previous seasons, Tommy would have killed the doctor and anyone associated with him. Tommy eventually holds the doctor at gunpoint, but instead of pulling the trigger, he spares him. Tommy does kill someone (who I won’t name) close to him in the same episode, so not everything has changed.

The final moments of the episode feature Tommy burning his possessions and riding off on a white horse. Fans will see this as a callback to the beginning of the series when Tommy rode a black horse. It’s not the picture-perfect ending for Tommy, but it’s a new beginning of some sorts in the way he rids himself from his old life. Well, at least he thought it was, until he was dragged back into the mix in The Immortal Man.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is a story about a father and a son

Cillian Murphy stars with his fellow Irishman

You can’t hide forever, Tommy Shelby. When Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man begins, Tommy is living in exile, willingly choosing to live as far away from his past life as possible. Yet, you know how this goes: something is bound to pull Tommy out of hiding and back into the madness of the Peaky Blinders.

Enter Duke Shelby, played by Barry Keoghan. Duke is the current leader of Birmingham’s Peaky Blinders. More importantly, he is the illegitimate son of Tommy Shelby. It’s the early stages of World War II, and Duke is leading the gang down a dark path. If there are two things Tommy hates, they’re traitors and fascism. Speaking of fascism, the villainous John Beckett (Tim Roth) is attempting to sway Duke into helping him with a scheme that would help Germany win the war.

Tommy won’t stand for Beckett’s manipulation of Duke, so he returns to the fray to save his old gang and, ultimately, his son. In a story of crime and violence, the part that stood out to Murphy (via Reuters) was the relationship between Tommy and Duke.

“When ​we got the story… clicking, it became just about family, about father and son,” Murphy said.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man also stars Rebecca Ferguson, Sophie Rundle, Ned Dennehy, Packy Lee, Ian Peck, Jay Lycurgo, and A Thousand Blows’ Stephen Graham. Tom Harper, who helmed episodes of the series, directs The Immortal Man from a script by Knight.

Is this the end of Peaky Blinders?

More stories are on the way

Credit: Netflix

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man might put a feather in the cap of Tommy Shelby’s story. However, Peaky Blinders will return with a new sequel series. It wouldn’t be a Peaky Blinders story without Knight, who returns as a writer and executive producer.

“I’m thrilled to be announcing this new chapter in the Peaky Blinders story,” Knight said in a statement to Netflix. “Once again, it will be rooted in Birmingham and will tell the story of a city rising from the ashes of the Birmingham blitz. The new generation of Shelbys have taken the wheel, and it will be a hell of a ride.”

The sequel series will be set in Britain in 1953. The show will introduce a new generation of Shelbys. The sequel show has already received a two-season order, each consisting of six hourlong episodes. Murphy won’t star in the sequel, but he is attached as an executive producer. There is no release date for the sequel series. For now, fans will have to enjoy Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, which heads to Netflix on March 20, 2026.

Do I need to watch the Peaky Blinders show before the movie?

Watching the Peaky Blinders show before The Immortal Man is not required viewing. Admittedly, it would help to watch a few episodes beforehand to learn about the characters and the style of the show. We created a guide of the essential Peaky Blinders episodes to watch before the movie. If you’re pressed for time, at least give the pilot a shot before firing up the movie.

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