James Corden has joined the cast of the second season of Netflix crime drama Dept. Q as filming continues across Scotland.
The actor and presenter is set to guest star as Dr Ben Smith, described as an eccentric but brilliant forensic psychologist.
Corden will appear opposite Matthew Goode’s abrasive detective DCI Carl Morck, with filming of his scenes due to begin in Scotland this week. The actor still best known to UK audiences as Smithy in Gavin & Stacey and internationally as the former host of The Late Late Show in the US.
Corden has previously appeared in films, theatre productions and the Prime Video series Mammals. Netflix confirmed Corden’s involvement after reports about his casting emerged at the start of September. What’s on Netflix reports that he will appear as part of the show’s expanding ensemble.
Production on season two began in Scotland during the summer, with Edinburgh again providing the principal setting for the series.
Location work has returned to Leith Links, the area used for the fictional Leith Park and the home of Morck, while production activity has also been reported around Harrison Park.
The second season has expanded filming locations beyond the capital. Crews travelled to Aberdeen during August, with filming taking place around the beachfront and inside the disused Bon Accord Baths on Justice Mill Lane.
Production vehicles, catering facilities and motorcycles were stationed beside the south stand at Pittodrie Stadium. The football ground appears to have been used primarily as a base for crews working across the city rather than being confirmed as an on-screen location.
Stunt teams were also seen near the seafront. The Art Deco Bon Accord Baths, which closed in 2008, is expected to have an identifiable role in the new story. Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce confirmed that cameras had been operating inside the building.
Matthew Goode will lead the returning cast as Morck, with Alexej Manvelov back as Akram Salim, Leah Byrne as DC Rose Dickson and Jamie Sives as DCI James Hardy.
Scottish actors Mark Bonnar and Kate Dickie will return as Stephen Burns and Detective Chief Superintendent Moira Jacobson respectively. Aaron McVeigh is also back as Morck’s stepson Jasper Stewart, alongside Still Game star Sanjeev Kohli as Martin Fleming.
Netflix’s current confirmed returning cast does not include Kelly Macdonald, who played Morck’s therapist Dr Rachel Irving in the first season.
Corden joins an extensive list of new arrivals including Aisling Franciosi as Kimmie, Greg Wise as Derek Powell and Nicholas Rowe as Thomas Fulton.
Tony Curran, Hamish Clark, Alex Ferns, Ross Anderson, Rebecca Root, Isla Johnston and American actress Amy Brenneman have also been cast.
The new investigation will take Morck and his unconventional basement team into the highest levels of Scottish society, pursuing wealthy and influential people who believe they are beyond the reach of the law.
The story is inspired by The Absent One, also published under the title Disgrace, the second Department Q novel by Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen. That book follows an investigation into the decades-old murders of a brother and sister linked to a group of privileged former boarding-school pupils.
Netflix has not announced a release date for season two but it is expected to launch in the second half of 2027.