Netflix has renewed Altered Carbon for Season 2, albeit with a number of significant tweaks. The biggest change: Avengers staple Anthony Mackie is replacing Joel Kinnaman as Takeshi Kovacs. Additionally, Alison Schapker (The Flash, Fringe) has come aboard as co-showrunner.Kinnaman’s departure from the body-swapping series was not unexpected. As established in Richard K. Morgan’s sci-fi novels, the lead character’s journey spans hundreds of years and myriad different bodies.

Back in February, Kinnaman himself foreshadowed his exit, telling TVGuide.com, “We have no idea what the second season would be, but my guess is… it’s sort of going to be an anthology show where maybe a couple of the characters continue into the next season.” (Kinnaman’s recent casting in Amazon’s Hanna opposite Killing co-star Mireille Enos served as another clue that he was parting ways with the show.)

Schapker, meanwhile, will work alongside returning co-showrunner Laeta Kalogridis. The duo will serve as EPs alongside David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Marcy Ross and James Middleton.

For Mackie, Altered Carbon reps his first significant series gig. Prior to this, his most noteworthy TV role was playing Martin Luther King, Jr. opposite Bryan Cranston’s Lyndon B. Johnson in HBO’s All the Way. In addition to his role as Sam Wilson/The Falcon in the Marvel films, his big screen credits include Million Dollar Baby, 8 Mile, Notorious and The Hurt Locker.

The big-budget Altered Carbon dropped its 10-episode first season last January. It received mixed reviews, with TVLine’s Kim Roots calling it “gorgeous yet uneven.” Season 2, which will consist of eight episodes, will likely bow in 2019. [Source]