Erotic Polish drama 365 Days was both one of Netflix’s most popular and most controversial titles of 2020. On the one hand, it was a major success, as it found itself on the Top 10 lists in around 90 countries and it ranks as the fourth most-searched movie on Google last year. On the other, its subject matter drew a sizeable backlash online, with one petition calling for its removal from the platform earning 100K signatures.
Netflix has decided that its viewing figures are too impressive to ignore, however, and has announced that not one, but two sequels are on the way. Stars Michele Morrone and Anna-Maria Sieklucka will reprise their roles, with Magdalena Lamparska likewise returning. Meanwhile, actor/model Simone Susinna is boarding the cast as new character Nacho, and Barbara Bialowas and Tomasz Mandes are back in the directors’ chairs.
The first 365 Days saw a young Polish woman imprisoned by a Sicilian gangster who gives her one year to fall in love with him. While some viewers bought into the dark romance, many slammed the film for romanticizing sexual assault and Stockholm Syndrome. In Part 2, Laura and her captor-turned-lover Massimo are reunited, but “their new beginning is complicated by Massimo’s family ties and a mysterious man who enters Laura’s life to win her heart and trust at any cost.”
The big difference with these sequels from the first movie is that Netflix was only involved in the latter in handling the distribution rights. The next two entries in the saga, however, will be produced in-house by the streaming giant. Deadline, who broke the news, also says to expect for the company to tone down some of the more risqué elements of the original novels by Polish author Blanka Lipinska in order to avoid inciting more controversy.
Production starts this month in Poland before hopping over to Italy, and the two 365 Days sequels will shoot back to back and both debut on Netflix in 2022.
