Peaky Blinders boss Steven Knight defends controversial Tommy and Arthur reveal

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Spoilers for Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man follow.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man revisits Tommy Shelby’s story after a four-year gap since the TV show concluded. However, this new installment finds Tommy (Cillian Murphy) in a significantly changed world compared to the end of season six.

The year is 1940, and Britain is at war. Tommy’s son, Charles, is fighting in the war, and his brother, Arthur, has passed away since the last season ended.

Paul Anderson, the actor who played Arthur, had mentioned before the film The Immortal Man came out that he wouldn’t be returning for a sequel. However, fans were still surprised and shocked to learn what ultimately happened to his character.

The movie shows Tommy accidentally killed his brother during a fight after the brother stole his car. Many viewers were shocked by this twist, finding it hard to accept that Tommy was capable of taking his brother’s life.

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So, I was listening to the Immortal Man podcast, and Steven Knight, the guy who created Peaky Blinders, was talking about why he made the choices he did in the movie. Basically, he said Tommy being so messed up at the start wasn’t just for drama – it was all about the guilt he was carrying, and that was super important for setting the whole tone of the film.

You know, it wasn’t always set in stone that Tommy would be the one to take out Arthur. Steven Knight, the show’s creator, actually said it kind of hit him during the writing process – like a realization of where the story was always heading. He said sometimes you’re writing and suddenly everything clicks, and you understand what you’ve been building towards all along.

I was really feeling the weight of guilt while writing. Then it occurred to me, ‘Of course he feels guilty – because he’s the one who did it.’

Knight explained that Tommy killing his brother signifies the end of Tommy’s character arc, because family was the most important thing to him.

Knight added: “And here he is, he shot his own brother. Everything falls apart after that.

Everything is lost. All of Tommy Shelby’s beliefs, values, and everything he once cared about have been destroyed, all at once.

Anderson revealed to LadBible that he was told about what happened to his character after the movie ended, and he thought it was a fantastic development.

“I mean, it’s such a powerful thing to do. It’s something you don’t see on TV.”

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is now available to watch on Netflix.

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2026-03-22 12:49