Wayward season 2 renewal suddenly feels closer than ever

In a year marked with a ton of high-profile Netflix shows returning or either making their premieres, there have been a handful of standouts that have definitely surprised us with their quality and impact. One of those surprises is without question Wayward, the mystery thriller series from creator, writer, and star Mae Martin and also starring Academy Award nominee Toni Collette.

In the series, Martin stars as police officer Alex Dempsey, who becomes wrapped up in the twisted mystery of a school for troubled teenagers in his strange small town of Tall Pines. Collette portrays Evelyn Wade, the enigmatic but unsettling leader of the school, the person people fear and have long history with, including Alex's own wife. Across eight episodes, it's a chilling unraveling.

Wayward was announced as a limited series by Netflix and has been promoted as such since its Sept. 25 release on the streaming service. But with positive reception from critics and viewers and an impressive viewership, there's always the conversation about whether a second season could actually happen. Given its ratings and comments from Martin, season 2 could be on the table.

Mae Martin reveals there's more story to tell in Wayward season 2

Following its first four days of release, Wayward made its debut at No. 1 on Netflix's Top 10 English Global TV Shows ranking. Even though show arrived with 8.2 million views, which translates to 48.8 million hours viewed, during a slower week on Netflix, that's still an impressive figure. The following week, the series remained at No. 1 and leapt to 14.1 million views, and in its third week, Wayward gained 5.5 million views. It's all adding up and could continue to for the foreseeable future.

Obviously, we have seen Netflix walk back on decision regarding limited series due to overwhelming viewership. Ryan Murphy's Monster anthology series debuted as a one-off, but the Emmy-winning series just released season 3 and is now entering its fourth season. Just this summer, Netflix renewed Untamed for season 2 after the supposedly limited series debuted to unexpectedly huge viewership numbers.

Wayward's numbers aren't close to those of Untamed, but they are still impressive nonetheless and could point Netflix putting a bigger push behind the series. While some still might think it's a long shot, the streamer could totally take a chance on the exciting series and roll the dice on a second season. Mae Martin even commented on wanting to come back for another round.

"I was told it was a miniseries, but there’s definitely more story to tell, I think. We left all those characters in crisis, basically. Hopefully it’s tied up enough that it’s satisfying to watch as a series," Martin said in an interview with TV Insider. While sharing that Netflix told them it was a miniseries, Martin also made sure to leave the door open even slightly in the event of a renewal.

Collette has also shared with TV Insider that it's "endlessly intriguing" to imagine where Wayward season 2 could go next and teased that the cast have spoken about wanting to reunite for another season. Where there's a will, there's way for the story to continue in a follow-up season, and the cast is clearly game. There's also an audience that's undoubtedly ready to return to Tall Pines.

Watch Wayward season 2 only on Netflix.