The Nazi Clouds Descend on ‘Babylon Berlin’ Season 5 (Exclusive First Image)

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Fans of “Babylon Berlin” will be pleased to know that the end is near – filming for the fifth and final season is due to wrap up later this year. Co-creators Tom Tykwer, Henk Handloegten, and Achim von Borries have started revealing some insights into how they intend to tie up loose ends in their critically acclaimed German neo-noir period drama.

In the opening scene of season 5, only revealed to The Hollywood Reporter, Volker Bruch portrays Inspector Gereon Rath in a shadowy form against a foreboding backdrop (take a look up there). The storyline of the concluding season, inspired by Volker Kutscher’s fifth novel about Gereon Rath titled “The March Fallen,” brings Gereon together once more with Charlotte Ritter, who has transformed into an investigator from a flapper and takes on one last case with him.

Following Gereon’s mysterious disappearance, Charlotte is left to pursue a string of murders involving ex-frontline soldiers on her own. As she delves deeper into the case, she starts to discover clues suggesting a connection between these killings and Gereon’s past, as well as that of the newly appointed Reich Chancellor, Adolf Hitler.

The eight-episode series narrative unfolds across five weeks, beginning on January 30, 1933 – the day Adolf Hitler assumed the role of Reich Chancellor – and concluding on March 5, 1933. During this period, Hitler waged a brutal and deadly campaign against his political adversaries. This violent campaign culminated in elections that ultimately granted him absolute power.

For five weeks, the entire nation experienced a drastic transformation, as Tykwer explained to THR. Suddenly, Hitler’s troops multiplied exponentially, assuming the role of law enforcement and having the authority to arrest and shoot socialists and communists. The initial concentration camps were established, putting the entire society at risk on an unprecedented scale. Simultaneously, there was a promise that everything would be fundamentally changed.

During the five weeks preceding the election, every individual in Germany, as well as each character from the series “Babylon Berlin,” finds themselves at a critical juncture, needing to decide between adapting, standing up for a fight, or choosing to escape.

Tykwer points out that it’s a common stereotype to believe all Germans eagerly embraced Nazism. However, he clarifies that this wasn’t the case; instead, society was deeply divided. There were numerous protests against Hitler before his election, with hundreds of thousands of people demonstrating daily. Each character in the series will have to make a decision about where they stand.

The future of the fifth season of the series “Babylon Berlin” faced uncertainty following the closure of Sky Deutschland’s local originals department, a significant backer for the show. However, the public broadcast group ARD Degeto, Gereon Wetzel’s production company X Filme, and international sales company Beta Film have pledged to produce a final season. Their decision was based on the show’s impressive global success, having been sold to over 140 territories globally, and its popularity in Germany, where it has garnered more than 100 million views on ARD’s streaming service.

In the United States, the TV show “Babylon Berlin” was originally available on Netflix, but it lost its footing when Netflix chose not to continue with season 4. Last year, Kino Lorber’s streaming platform, MHz Choice, stepped in and is now the exclusive domestic broadcaster for the series.

At the London TV Screenings market on Tuesday, Beta is set to unveil a sneak peek of the upcoming fifth season of “Babylon Berlin.

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2025-02-24 12:24