When to expect Slow Horses season 7, as cast tease big surprises after *that* season 6 ending

*Warning: Spoilers ahead for the Slow Horses season 6 finale*

Slow Horses season 6 episode 6 ended with an almighty cliffhanger, but don’t fret. Not only is season 7 definitely happening, but you won’t have to wait an age to find out what happens next. 

The finale, aptly titled ‘Judgment Day’, was an absolute bloodbath. After the devastating loss of Coe (Tom Brooke), a shootout at Taverner’s (Kristin Scott Thomas) safe house leaves Emma (Ruth Bradley) dead and Louisa (Rosalind Eleazar) injured.

But the biggest shock comes in the final moments, when River (Jack Lowden) collapses after being exposed to a deadly nerve agent. His fate is left hanging in the balance, which is made worse by the fact that things were finally looking up for him and Sid (Olivia Cooke).

Thankfully, Apple TV has already confirmed another chapter. So, here’s everything we know about when Slow Horses season 7 will be released and what to expect.

When to expect Slow Horses season 7

Apple TV is yet to confirm a release date just yet, but given the entire history of Slow Horses, we can expect season 7 to drop in or around September 2027. 

The spy series bucks the frankly annoying trend of waiting years between seasons (not naming any names *cough* Stranger Things *cough*). The fact that it’s based on Mick Herron’s Slough House books certainly helps, but the creative team don’t like to waste any time either. 

Aside from season 5, Slow Horses shoots two six-episode seasons back-to-back as single 12-episode blocks. So while one chapter is filming, the previous one is in post-production. And yes, that means season 7 has already been filmed. 

What’s more, the release dates give us an even better idea. Seasons 1 and 2 arrived in the same year – April and December 2022. Season 3 then arrived in November 2023. 

Since then, every new season has premiered in September the following year, so there’s no reason to expect the team to change this for the seventh run. Of course, this is just our prediction, but no doubt Apple TV will confirm the exact release date in the months to come. 

Slow Horses season 7 is set to deliver a whole new MI5 conspiracy

Slow Horses season 7 will follow Herron’s eighth Slough House book, Bad Actors. The story revolves around the mysterious disappearance of a member of a Downing Street think tank, who specialises in predicting how the public will react to government policies. 

Former MI5 boss Claude Whelan is tasked with finding her. But his investigation leads straight back to Regent’s Park, with Diana Taverner emerging as a prime suspect. As expected, Jackson Lamb and his slow horses soon find themselves caught up in the chaos.

As for how season 6 sets things up, there’s the rather enormous question of whether River has survived his poisoning. Louisa is also recovering from her injuries, and Slough House will have to deal with the aftermath of losing Coe and Emma.

And following Taverner’s dramatic showdown with Damien Cantor, it’ll be interesting to see where she stands within MI5 when the next season begins. 

The cast have dropped some intriguing season 7 hints

Obviously, the cast can’t give anything major away. However, there are some interesting teases floating around since the release of the season 6 finale. 

Catherine star Saskia Reeves told Town and Country there are “quite a few surprises” for her character in season 7. “There’s a massive cosmic joke foisted upon Catherine, which is the person who tries to do the least damage ends up probably doing the most,” she added. 

Elsewhere, Roddy Ho actor Christopher Chung told TV Insider, “Not alluding to what happens in season 7, but I think Roddy’s understanding of that happening to River would be, of course that would happen to River. Who else would that happen to?”

In the same interview, Gary Oldman acknowledged that Jackson Lamb’s relationship with River remains “a mixed bag.” 

“He’s got so much baggage from the father, from the grandfather who Lamb despises, despises him, and yet he sees the potential of River,” he said. “So it’s sort of at times, isn’t it, it’s a bit like a father-son kind of. It’s that kind of relationship.”

There’s also been a big cast update with five new actors joining the fold for season 7. They include Andor’s Varada Sethu, Ludwig’s Ethan Moorhouse, Downton Abbey’s Tuppence Middleton, Homeland’s Merab Ninidze and Anatomy of a Scandal’s Joshua McGuire.

We don’t yet know who they’ll be playing, but no doubt we’ll get updates soon. 

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Featured image credit: Apple TV