The Chestnut Man (Danish: Kastanjemanden) is a Danish crime series released on Netflix on 29 September 2021. The series was created by Dorte Warnøe Hagh, David Sandreuter, and Mikkel Serup, is directed by Kasper Barfoed and Mikkel Serup and is based on the book of the same name by Søren Sveistrup. The series stars Danica Curcic and Mikkel Boe Følsgaard as Naia Thulin and Mark Hess, who investigate the dismemberment and murders of several mothers in Copenhagen by a serial killer who leaves figurines made of chestnuts at the crime scenes. The series was renewed for a second season in 2024, adding Sofie Gråbøl and Katinka Lærke Petersen to the cast; it is set to premiere on 7 May 2026, under the title The Chestnut Man: Hide and Seek. == Synopsis == The Chestnut Man opens with the discovery of the murder of an entire family on an isolated farm in 1987. More than thirty years later, in present-day Copenhagen, a young woman is found murdered in a playground, her left eye cut out and one of her hands missing. Detective Naia Thulin is assigned to the case. With her reluctant new partner, Mark Hess, they notice a tiny figurine made of chestnuts lying next to the body. A mysterious piece of evidence is soon discovered on the chestnut man—the fingerprint of a missing girl, the daughter of politician Rosa Hartung. == Cast and characters == Danica Curcic as Naia Thulin, an investigator with the Copenhagen police Mikkel Boe Følsgaard as Mark Hess, an investigator from Europol who temporarily returns to Copenhagen David Dencik as Simon Genz, a forensics worker with the Copenhagen police and close friend of Thulin and Hess Lars Ranthe as Nylander, Thulin's boss Iben Dorner as Rosa Hartung, the Danish Minister of Social Affairs, whose daughter Kristine has disappeared Esben Dalgaard Anderssen as Steen Hartung, Rosa's husband Liva Forsberg as Le Thulin Louis Næss-Schmidt as Gustav Hartung Ali Kazim as Nehru Anders Hove as Aksel Elliott Crosset Hove as Linus Bekker Sofie Gråbøl (season 2) Katinka Lærke Petersen (season 2) == Episodes == === Season 1 (2021) === === Season 2 === == Development == On 19 August 2019, Netflix announced its second Danish series at the Copenhagen TV Festival. The Chestnut Man is based on the debut novel by award-winning writer Søren Sveistrup (The Killing) and the series debuted on Netflix worldwide. == Reception == The Chestnut Man received generally favourable views from critics and holds a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on six critic reviews. Critics have described the show as "gripping" and "gruesome", while others, like Verdens Gang, described it as a "perfected cliche", while also giving it a four out of six on a dice roll. == References == == External links == The Chestnut Man at IMDb The Chestnut Man on Netflix