''Department Q'' ( da, Afdeling Q) is a Danish

Nordic noir Nordic noir, also known as Scandinavian noir or Scandi noir, is a genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular ...

film series, based on the

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

novels by Danish author

Jussi Adler-Olsen Carl Valdemar Jussi Henry Adler-Olsen (born 2 August 1950) is a Denmark, Danish crime fiction writer, a publisher, editor, and entrepreneur, best known for his ''Department Q'' series. He made his debut as a nonfiction writer in 1984, and as a ...

Novels

Originally written in Danish, the novels have been translated into numerous languages, including English, Bulgarian, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Slovakian, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish and Vietnamese. Despite using the same translations, the

Penguin Group Penguin Group is a British trade book publisher and part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by the German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. The new company was created by a merger that was finalised on 1 July 2013, with Bertelsmann initial ...

titled the first five novels differently in the UK and the USA. Their editions use the same English titles as the film adaptations.

Films

* ''

The Keeper of Lost Causes ''The Keeper of Lost Causes'' (Danish: ''Kvinden i buret''), also known as ''Department Q: The Keeper of Lost Causes'', is a 2013 Danish film directed by Mikkel Nørgaard. The movie is based on the novel by Jussi Adler-Olsen. It is the first fi ...

'' (2013) * '' The Absent One'' (2014) * ''

A Conspiracy of Faith ''A Conspiracy of Faith'' (Danish: ''Flaskepost fra P''), also known as ''Department Q: A Conspiracy of Faith'', is a 2016 Danish film, directed by Hans Petter Moland, based on a novel by Jussi Adler-Olsen. It is the third film in the Department Q ...

'' (2016) * ' (2018) * ' (2021) Upcoming * ''

Boundless Boundless may refer to: * ''Boundless'' (album), a 2001 album by Rajaton * Boundless (company), an American textbook company * ''Boundless'' (video game), a video game * ''Boundless'' (Canadian TV series), a reality TV series * ''Boundless'' (S ...

'' (2024) * '' The Scarred Woman'' (2024) * '' Victim 2117'' (2026) * '' The Shadow Murders'' (TBA) * ''Untitled final film'' (TBA) The first four films were produced by

Peter Aalbæk Jensen Peter Aalbæk Jensen (born 8 April 1956 in Osted) is a Danish film producer who in 1992 with director Lars von Trier founded the Danish film company Zentropa and later its huge studio complex Filmbyen. His father was writer Erik Aalbæk Jensen. ...

and

Louise Vesth Louise Vesth (born March 18, 1973) is a Danish film producer . Her short film '' Om natten'' was nominated for an Oscar in the category Best Short Film in 2008. Early life Louise Vesth graduated from the Aarhus School of Business with a bachelor' ...

through

Zentropa Zentropa, or Zentropa Entertainments, is a Danish film company started in 1992 by director Lars von Trier and producer Peter Aalbæk Jensen. Zentropa is named after the train company Zentropa in the film ''Europa'' (1991), which started the colla ...

, however despite their commercial and critical success, author

was unhappy with the results and the casting, feeling that the films and characters departed from his novels too much and that his suggestions were being ignored, leading to

Nordisk Film Nordisk Film A/S (lit. "Nordic Film") is a Danish entertainment company established in 1906 in Copenhagen by filmmaker Ole Olsen. It is the fourth-oldest film studio in the world behind the Gaumont Film Company, Pathé, and Titanus ...

(who had already distributed the prior films in Denmark) and producer taking over for the remainder of the series, with all the recurring roles recast.

Cast and characters

was unable to return as Assad after ' due to having recently become a father having other scheduling conflicts with the filming of ''

'', which started on 5 September 2022, half a year earlier than planned.

Crew

Reception

Box office performance

The films have been massively successful, selling over three million tickets in Denmark alone, where the installments regularly top the yearly box-office. ' (2018) became the highest grossing Danish film of all time upon release, with a gross of 72,500,000 DKK, '' The Absent One'' (2014) the second highest with 68,1 M. DKK, ''

'' (2016) the fourth with 64,3 M. DKK, and ''

'' (2012) the fifth with 59,01 M. DKK. ''The Purity of Vengeance'' is additionally the 11th overall highest grossing film in Denmark. The fifth film ' however, which marked a complete recast, was significantly less successful despite a larger budget.

Critical response

References

{{Department Q Action film series