{"id":138618,"date":"2025-09-12T21:25:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-12T21:25:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/138618\/"},"modified":"2025-09-12T21:25:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-12T21:25:10","slug":"luciane-buchanan-not-returning-to-night-agent-season-3-exclusive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/138618\/","title":{"rendered":"Luciane Buchanan Not Returning To ‘Night Agent’ Season 3 (Exclusive)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tEXCLUSIVE: In 2023, a then-little known outside of New Zealand actress named Luciane Buchanan<\/a> captured the hearts of Netflix<\/a> viewers as Rose Larkin, a cybersecurity wiz thrust into a dangerous government conspiracy on spy drama The Night Agent<\/a>, with lowly FBI agent Peter Sutherland (Gabriel Basso<\/a>) as her protector. Fans loved the duo\u2019s dynamic and, despite the two going their separate ways in the Season 1 finale, Rose was the only character besides Basso\u2019s titular Night Agent that was brought back for Season 2. <\/p>\n

\n\tThat won\u2019t happen again, with Peter and Rose\u2019s Season 2 finale breakup permanent \u2014 at least for now.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI won\u2019t be returning to Season 3 of The Night Agent,\u201d Buchanan told Deadline in an exclusive interview tied to her new series, Apple TV+\u2019s Chief Of War. \u201cAs much as that show has been so amazing, especially for my career \u2014 being a lead on a U.S. show from little New Zealand was such a whirlwind \u2014 the writers decided that they wanted to follow Peter and his journey based on what happened at the end of Season 2. And so, we don\u2019t get to see what happens to Rose, but I think it\u2019s a really exciting time for the show, and who knows, it\u2019s not a goodbye forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIt was The Night Agent creator, executive producer and showrunner Shawn Ryan and his producing partner at MiddKid Productions, fellow Night Agent EP Marney Hochman, who broke the news to Buchanan. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThey called me not so long after Season 2, and they were like, we\u2019ve been trying to find a way to bring her in, but we want to do her character justice and not make her a sub-character,\u201d she said. \u201cI totally respected that decision and agreed. I was like, if it makes sense to a story, I\u2019ll do that. If it doesn\u2019t, let\u2019s not force that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tWhy Buchanan Is Leaving \u2018The Night Agent\u2019\t<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a statement to Deadline, Ryan spoke about Buchanan\u2019s run on The Night Agent and the reason she won\u2019t be in Season 3. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cLuciane has been a beloved member of our Night Agent family for our first two seasons and her portrayal of Rose Larkin and Rose\u2019s relationship with Peter has been a huge part of the show\u2019s success,\u201d he said. \u201cWe always envisioned the show as telling a new story each season with a revolving cast, and the story we broke for Season 3, much to our chagrin, didn\u2019t have a satisfying place for Rose.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tRyan left the door open for Buchanan to return in future seasons for a Rose-Peter reunion. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI adore Luciane as a person and as a performer and I don\u2019t believe that this means we\u2019re done telling the story of Peter and Rose,\u201d he said. \u201cI hope circumstances ultimately allow for the return of Rose to our Night Agent universe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBuchanan confirmed that Ryan and Hochman did mention to her the possibility for a The Night Agent return. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIf there is an opportunity that makes sense to the story for her to come back, I\u2019m sure they\u2019ll explore that, because they really loved the dynamics of Peter and Rose, and I know a lot of audiences loved that dynamic,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cSo I\u2019m sure Shawn Ryan and his team will find a little way; maybe we\u2019ll make a little cameo along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"The<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tLuciane Buchanan as Rose Larkin and Gabriel Basso as Agent Peter Sutherland in \u2018The Night Agent\u2019<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tDan Power\/Netflix<\/p>\n

\t\tRose\u2019s Legacy And\u2026 A Spin-off?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tBuchanan spoke about Rose\u2019s evolution on The Night Agent, which started as an adaptation of Matthew Quirk\u2019s novel of the same name in Season 1. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI really loved Rose. I loved how she was someone who didn\u2019t follow the grain, she was grieving family members and just wanted answers, and that was the driving force. And of course, the love story with Peter came along with that, and I really enjoyed it,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

\n\tSeason 2 was an original story not based on any source material, and Buchanan praised the series\u2019 writers for being \u201ca really big advocate of how Rose progressed in terms of the trauma that she\u2019s already experienced.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cFor season two, it was her deciding whether she\u2019s willing to enter this world again and be with Peter, and what that brings with it, everything that she was trying to run away from,\u201d she said. \u201cI think she got her answer in the end, that, as much as she cares about him and really values that relationship, it\u2019s not the best for either of them. They\u2019ve lived completely different lives, so It made sense that they ended up the way that they did, and I think make consequences feel real. Season 3 has to explore that with Peter on his own, without her little annoying, OK, I\u2019m back again. I\u2019m not interested in playing that.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\tWhile there are no current plans, Buchanan is game for a Rose-centered Night Agent spinoff as her heroine has proven to be quite capable at the spy craft.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI kept hinting at that, and they\u2019re like, come on,\u201d she said. \u201cWell, she doesn\u2019t have to be out there shooting guns; she could be behind the computer doing some things.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAs for what comes next on The Night Agent, \u201cI have no idea what they\u2019re doing for Season 3; I\u2019m sure it\u2019s something super juicy,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cI can\u2019t wait to watch.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tShe is fully aware how invested fans have been in Peter and Rose\u2019s love story. She has a message for them.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cSo many people are so invested, and I just want to thank them for supporting me,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cThere\u2019s a bunch of fans who continue to comment on everything that I post, asking whether I\u2019d be in Season 3. This hopefully answers that question, and they can move on with that. They\u2019ve been the best and supported me, some of them have followed me on to other things, and I\u2019m just so grateful, it\u2019s been so lovely.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tFrom \u2018The Night Agent\u2019 To \u2018Chief of War\u2019\t<\/p>\n

\n\tSPOILER ALERT: This portion of the interview includes details about the first eight episodes of Chief of War.<\/p>\n

\n\tOne of the other things fans have followed Buchanan to is Apple TV+\u2019s epic Hawaiian historical drama Chief of War, co-created, executive produced by and starring Jason Momoa<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\n\tBuchanan, who is of Tongan descent, auditioned for the series while she was finishing Season 1 of The Night Agent, landing the starring role of Ka\u2018ahumanu, King Kamehameha I\u2019s queen consort and a major figure in Hawaiian history who played a key role in the unification of the islands. She filmed the drama series between Seasons 1 and 2 of The Night Agent. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWhat made it really special for me was that I didn\u2019t realize that a big production company like Apple TV wanted to invest in a Polynesian story, which is very close to mine \u2014 I\u2019m not Hawaiian, but it\u2019s similar in some ways to my tongue and heritage. I was like, this can\u2019t be real, and I need to be a part of this, whether it\u2019s the smallest role with one line. Who I ended up portraying in the end, Ka\u2018ahumanu, is very, very influential to that story, so it was such a dream.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSince Buchanan was cast in Chief of War before The Night Agent had come out, she was still a virtual unknown in Hollywood when she landed the part. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cLooking back, it was just like, wow, they took such a risk on me,\u201d she said. \u201cI remember when Night Agent Season 1 did come out I was in the middle of shoot, and I came back to see the crew, they all gave me a lovely clap, and were like, congrats, you\u2019re No.1 around the world. I was like, \u2018Oh my gosh, that\u2019s overwhelming.\u2019 Anyways, back to work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFor Buchanan, the connection between The Night Agent and Chief of War goes deeper than timing.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIn a weird way, those two experiences have always been in tandem, and I don\u2019t think I would have been ready for the amount of work that I\u2019ve had with Ka\u2018ahumanu being No.2 again if I hadn\u2019t gone through the experiences on the Night Agent as a lead as well,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

\n\tInterestingly, Buchanan initially didn\u2019t realize she would be No.2 on the Chief of War call sheet. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI did not know that I was a lead for the show because I hadn\u2019t gotten a script,\u201d she said. \u201cI asked our director for Episode 1 and 2, Justin Chon, so how much am I in the show, like, roughly how many episodes? And he\u2019s like, Oh, every episode, it\u2019s Jason, and then there\u2019s you.\u201d <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Chief<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tChief of War<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tApple TV+<\/p>\n

\t\tLearning the Character & the Language\t<\/p>\n

\n\tBuchanan didn\u2019t know who Ka\u2018ahumanu was until she researched the character for the audition. After landing the role, she flew to Hawaii, visited museums and her birthplace, talked to historians and advisors.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI learned pretty quickly who she was and what she meant to the people of Hawaii,\u201d she said. \u201cI definitely was paralyzed in fear for about a month before we started shooting, and then leant into that fear to try portraying her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThere was also the language challenge. The characters in Chief of War speak the Hawaiian language which has been facing extinction after being banned for decades. Hawaiian and Tongan are both Polynesian languages but Buchanan grew up only speaking English. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI totally went into that audition being like, yeah, I\u2019ll learn Hawaiian,\u201d she said. \u201cI had never heard Hawaiian spoken before; I just knew little phrases from Lilo and Stitch, Ohana and Aloha. I travel there, but I haven\u2019t heard people have conversations there, so it was completely new to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMastering Hawaiian proved to be \u201csuper tough.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI think I was one of the worst at the beginning, which I kind of like; I like knowing where I start, and it\u2019s kind of like a kick up the bum \u2014 such a Kiwi thing to say \u2014 just to get me to work harder and harder,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cI did coaching sessions every day, sometimes three times a day. I got off Instagram, I wasn\u2019t socializing or anything. I really dedicated myself to that because I know the history of the language and that it was endangered and banned. As someone who\u2019s an outsider and not Hawaiian, I had to make sure I did my best, because this is going to be seen by millions of people \u2014 and probably heard for the first time for a lot of people. It ended up being my favorite and most rewarding part of being a part of that project.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tKa\u2018ahumanu\u2019s relationship with Ka\u2019iana\t<\/p>\n

\n\tKa\u2018ahumanu has a special relationship with Jason Momoa\u2019s warrior Ka\u02bbiana who, upon returning from his world travels, admits that she understands him better than anyone else. Now both married to other people, they grow closer, sharing long gazes and hand-holding. (The storyline follows a popular historical speculation about a romantic liaison between the two.)<\/p>\n

\n\t\u2018It was noted in history that they were very fond of each other, which stirs things up the future as we continue with the show, and I\u2019m sure we\u2019ll explore that,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cBut I think the main thing when I was approaching our story, which is based on historical events, she meets him directly after she\u2019s been told a prophecy. She doesn\u2019t know what it means at the time, but she\u2019s almost enamored by him in their first meeting because he talks about war in such a different way that she can relate to and that piques her interest.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe two don\u2019t see each other for years. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cOnce she learns he\u2019s alive, she\u2019s thrilled to see him again, because he not only is alive, but is one of the first Hawaiians to actually leave the islands and saw things that she\u2019s so curious about,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cI think that, again, draws some interest to him, and that was really interesting to explore, because so much time had passed, but there was still something about this warrior that fascinates her, and now things are different. Now she is someone of status, and wife of a chief. She\u2019s trying to influence her husband to see the good in him, and vice versa, that Ka\u02bbiana can see something in King Kamehameha. That\u2019s really fun to play, and I think we we have more room to explore that in future seasons.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Luciane<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tLuciane Buchanan and Jason Momoa in \u2018Chief of War\u2019<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tApple TV+<\/p>\n

\t\tKa\u2018ahumanu-Rose parallels\t<\/p>\n

\n\tKa\u2018ahumanu shares some of Rose\u2019s naivet\u00e9 as both trust people\u2019s good intentions. In Episode 7, Ka\u2018ahumanu sided with her husband in welcoming \u201cpale skin\u201d sailors against Ka\u02bbiana\u2019s warnings about their true intentions. The visitors ended up massacring a village, which left her devastated.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cYeah, I think there are similarities, for sure. I seem to find myself in characters that are very headstrong and very convincing as well,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cBut in terms of what happened in Episode 7, I think she\u2019s trying to toe the line of, I am someone of status, but I\u2019m not in the position of my husband. So she\u2019s trying to mediate these two men in this world, and ultimately, at the end of the day, and what she says to Ka\u02bbiana, my duty is to my chief, and I serve him as much as I agree with you, we just need to slow this down. Ka\u02bbiana, Jason\u2019s character, is privy to so much knowledge that we don\u2019t quite understand in terms of what these outside pale skins are capable of and the weapons that they possess. So I think everyone\u2019s slowly catching up, and unfortunately, it\u2019s a massacre, which took the others to realize, okay, maybe this peace train that we were running on might not be the answer. There is an outside threat. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWith Rose, she was someone who always had her doubts, and was always trying to convince Peter throughout the series to be a bit more critical, but then that would backfire in the face too. So yeah, those are both fun things to play, and I really, really enjoyed it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tWoman in a male-dominated world\t<\/p>\n

\n\tLike Rose, but on a much bigger scale, Ka\u2018ahumanu is seeking an agency. Smart and capable, she is trying to assert political power beyond her assigned role in society. In Episode 8, it was her, working with Ka\u2019iana\u2019s wife, Kupuohi, who get the job done by getting Kamehameha to agree to Ka\u2019iana\u2019s plan for using Western guns in the upcoming war. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s so hard to know when you\u2019re playing real people and you don\u2019t have enough resources to justify why they do the things that they do,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cWhen I looked at her parents, I was like, okay, her dad is a war advisor. His life is ruled by a war; he\u2019s participated in so many battles and was there when Captain Cook came, so he has this knowledge that he would have passed out to her. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWar has always been on her periphery. She doesn\u2019t fight, but it\u2019s part of her world, and I realized her mother was quite a rebel and did things that women shouldn\u2019t really do. I use it as an influence as to who my character was based on her parents and the research; history books showed how cunning she was. She wasn\u2019t allowed in men\u2019s spaces and would find a little messenger or a spy that would go listen in and then relay the information to her. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cShe was always finding ways to be involved in a man\u2019s world, she was quite creative. That\u2019s what\u2019s fascinating me about the character: this is someone who\u2019s different and thought outside the box and didn\u2019t really abide by rules \u2014 kind of like Rose. I just wanted to inject as much of that into her character, because the biggest thing for me was in Episode 2, we learned that she is barren and she won\u2019t be able to produce an heir. The No.1 job for a wife of the king is to produce the next king, so I took that as, if her legacy is not her child, what is going to be the legacy? I believe that she thought, well, I have to be that legacy myself. I\u2019m going to assert my power and find my ways into all these war discussions and ultimately, the unification of Hawaii. I won\u2019t spoil it but she is the person to get the job done, it\u2019s pretty inspiring.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThat is why, when there were conversations about dropping the infertility storyline from the show, Buchanan made a case about keeping it, and was successful. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI really fought for it, because I really believe that was a catalyst for her to become the person that she was; it really took a turn of her trajectory,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Luciane<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tLuciane Buchanan in \u2018Chief of War\u2019<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tApple TV+<\/p>\n

\t\tWorking With Momoa & Teasing Finale\t<\/p>\n

\n\tChief of War has been a passion project for Hawaiian native Momoa who, in addition to starring, is co-creator and executive producer, co-wrote every episode and directed the upcoming Season 1 finale, which will be released Sept. 19. <\/p>\n

\u201cWorking with Jason was so fun,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cI\u2019m very grateful that he believed in me, which was awesome, because, first of all, I\u2019m not Hawaiian, as I mentioned. Ka\u2018ahumanu was actually six feet tall and 300 pounds by the time she passed away, but he really championed me and gave me the confidence, and when I wanted to play her in a specific way, he gave me space to do that, which is not always the case.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe actress, who is 5\u20192\u2033, spoke about Momoa\u2019s personal connection to the project and how it was filming the finale, directed by him. (The Aquaman star is a descendant to Ka\u02bbiana in real life).<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe series means so much to him, and that passion really came across in his directing,\u201d Buchanan said. \u201cHe is full of energy; it was so funny to have him and his loincloth, telling me where to walk and where the cameras should go. We shot on an actual lava field on the Big Island of Hawaii, and we had three different units going at the same time \u2014 big, big battle scene, volcano Mauna Loa erupted, and that was also part of the story; all these magical moments happened. It\u2019s epic \u2014 the two armies of Hawaii coming together, the music is beautiful as well, so I think it will be a nice ending, but also leaves audiences wanting more.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\tHopes for Season 2\t<\/p>\n

\n\tBuchanan hinted several times where the story may go in a potential second season, something Apple TV+ has not shared plans for yet but she is looking forward to. Chief of War has not appeared on Nielsen\u2019s Top 10 for streaming originals; it has made Luminate\u2019s US Top 50, most recently at No.21. <\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI love playing this character so much; there\u2019s so much to be explored,\u201d she said. \u201cI think anyone who watched the show and has dug into the history will know that there are many, many more battles and betrayal and different things that happen in order for Kamehameha to unite these kingdoms. So there\u2019s definitely more to be explored, and I am crossing my fingers. But at this point, I have no idea what\u2019s going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThat is full circle for Buchanan who also had no idea while filming The Night Agent that it would be a hit and go to a second season with her in it.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThe moral of the story Nellie is, I never know what\u2019s happening at any point. You just have to go with it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"EXCLUSIVE: In 2023, a then-little known outside of New Zealand actress named Luciane Buchanan captured the hearts of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":138619,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[64,63,134,95124,35102,35103,435,16833,427],"class_list":{"0":"post-138618","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-gabriel-basso","12":"tag-jason-momoa","13":"tag-luciane-buchanan","14":"tag-netflix","15":"tag-the-night-agent","16":"tag-tv"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138618","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=138618"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138618\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/138619"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=138618"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=138618"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=138618"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}