How 'His Dark Materials' Could Return for Season 4 and What Cast Think

On Monday, December 26 His Dark Materials will end on HBO, bringing Philip Pullman's fantasy trilogy to its natural conclusion.

The show's final season adapts the third book in Pullman's children's series, titled The Amber Spyglass, and it follows Lyra Belacqua (Dafne Keen) and Will Parry (Amir Wilson) on a dangerous quest while Lyra's parents, Lord Asriel (James McAvoy) and Mrs Coulter (Ruth Wilson), wage war against the Authority.

However, although the HBO drama is in its final season that doesn't mean that it couldn't return in some aspect, with the same cast.

Here is everything you need to know about why that is the case.

How 'His Dark Materials' Season 4 Could Happen

Pullman's His Dark Materials is a trilogy with a self-contained story, it's true, but the author revisited the world he created in two books so far (with a third on the way). These novels are part of a new collection titled the Book of Dust.

The first book in the new series was released in 2017 and is titled La Belle Sauvage, while the second is the 2019 novel The Secret Commonwealth.

Set before the events of His Dark Materials, La Belle Sauvage follows Malcolm Polstead who is tasked with protecting a six-month-old Lyra and who goes on an epic journey to bring her safely to Jordon College, Oxford, where she can receive scholastic sanctuary and will be safe from the clutches of the Magisterium.

As a prequel, the story features a number of character from His Dark Materials including Lord Asriel and Mrs. Coulter.

The Secret Commonwealth, meanwhile, is set ten years after the events of His Dark Materials and it follows Lyra while she is a student of St Sophia's College, Oxford, and the journey she goes on when her daemon Pantalaimon runs away.

Given both stories are so closely linked to His Dark Materials, it stands to reason that they could be adapted in some form either as a fourth season or as a spin-off.

What the 'His Dark Materials' Cast Think About Returning

Keen, McAvoy, and Wilson told Newsweek how they felt about returning to the franchise, for either an adaptation of La Belle Sauvage or The Secret Commonwealth.

For Keen the idea of reprising her role as Lyra was an appealing one, as she said of The Secret Commonwealth: "I think if it did [get adapted], I'd say yes, I think I would, yeah.

"Yeah, if I got contacted, [but] it's a producer conversation. I love Lyra, I'd love to come back. I'd love to get to spend more time in wonderful Cardiff."

McAvoy and Wilson, meanwhile, joked about how La Belle Sauvage shows their characters at a much younger age, so if they were to return it'd have to be using the de-ageing technology used in Martin Scorsese's The Irishman.

McAvoy said: "Sure, but I don't know considering Asriel is meant to be 26."

In response, Wilson joked: "They're young, we could push those buttons, those young buttons that you can get. We could do that, what did Scorsese use?" and her co-star added: "get us Scorsese's guy in."

His Dark Materials concludes with its final two episodes on HBO and HBO Max on Monday, December 26 at 9 p.m. ET.