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'Shadow and Bone' Season 2: Fans in awe as Ben Barnes claims to have MASTERED character of Darkling

Barnes opened up about the Darkling's humanity and how he views him as a real person who has suffered, which is music to the ears of anyone who loves villains

Ben Barnes starrer 'Shadow and Bone' Season 1 was released on Netflix in April 2021 and soon became one of the most-watched series on the streaming giant. The series is based on two series of books in the Grishaverse by Leigh Bardugo -- the 'Shadow and Bone' trilogy and the 'Six of Crows'.

In June 2021, the series was renewed for an 8-episode second season just like the first season of the series. It was confirmed in January 2022 that production of the second season had begun. The trailer for the upcoming season was unveiled during Netflix's virtual fan event Tudum. In a recent interview, Ben Barnes spilled the beans and revealed that he has mastered the Darkling's personality in 'Shadow and Bone' Season 2. After starring in the first season, Barnes, Jessie Mei Li, Freddy Carter, Kit Young, and Amita Suman are all returning for the second season along with Daisy Head (Genya), Danielle Galligan (Nina), Calahan Skogman (Matthias), Sujaya Dasgupta (Zoya) and Archie Renaux (Mal). 

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According to Collider, Barnes discussed the Darkling's humanity and how he views him as a real person who has suffered, which is of course music to the ears of anyone who loves villains.

The actor said, "I would say, with regard to my character, what I was championing was finding the humanity. He’s quite emblematic of something dark and evil in the books, after the first one, so my mission was to make sure that he’s a real person, suffering the things he’s suffering and committing the sins that he’s committing. There are the real-world ramifications of those things, and the relationships, how they’re made and how they’re broken, whether they can be salvaged, what new connections he can forge to help him along his journey, whilst also representing and not shying away from the fact that this is the villain. Which parts of what he does are comprehensible? Which parts can you not condone? All of that stuff was swimming around in my head while we were shooting."

He continued, "Luckily, we have showrunners that are very kind and collaborative, in terms of my input on that character. I feel quite a deep connection to what it ended up being, even though it’s fantasy and even though it’s a villain. I felt like I could take ownership of a lot of where it goes, so I’m very keen to see it."

However, fans have been hailing the show's second season after the trailer was released during the fan event. While some fans claimed they cannot wait for the next season to premiere, some are just in awe of Ben Barnes as Darkling aka General Aleksander Kirigan. A fan said, "Finally! We see something of season 2! Alexander is as gorgeous as ever! Why is that man fine?"

Another fan shared, "CANNOT WAIT!!!" One fan tweeted, "S2 LOOKS SO GOOD." One added, "OHMYGODDDD ITS HEREEE CANT WAITTT." Lastly, a fan wrote, "FINALLY ALL MY CROWS TOGETHER OMGGGGGGGG."

Fans can't seem to wait for the upcoming season eagerly. The second season is slated to be released in 2023.

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