Riley Jones has admitted that the future of Vera is 'out of the cast's hands,' with series 13 still to be confirmed by ITV.
Gateshead born actor Riley has been a key player in the North East based crime drama for over a decade now, playing one of DCI Vera Stanhope's hard working colleagues DC Mark Edwards. Like his co-stars, Mark has been a regular on Sunday night TV for the last month and a half as Vera returned for a run of six new episodes, which culminated with intense and dramatic finale The Darkest Evening on Sunday, February 19.
Not content with having six new episodes of Vera to get stuck into, fans of the long-running show are now keen for more but, while lead actress Brenda Blethyn has let slip that another 'special' episode is in the can - the screen adaptation of Ann Cleeves' hit novel The Rising Tide, there is no word yet if Vera will return for another full series.
READ MORE: ITV's Vera 'replacement' confirmed as upset fans make new series demand
The latest run of the globally popular drama regularly pulled in audiences of over four million for ITV, but Riley said it's just a case of 'waiting for the call' to find out if there will be any more episodes to film.
Speaking to the Daily Express, he said: "I obviously hope there is and I'll be waiting to see if we get that call.
"And when we do it's all go, but I am in the know as much as you."
Riley's famous co-star Brenda has been candid about being totally worn out after filming Vera, having spent as long as 10 months away from home and admitting she's left feeling like she 'can't do it anymore.'
Talking about Brenda, Riley added: "Well, I think it's like any job, especially a job where it's so intense. Especially for Brenda obviously, she's in pretty much every scene and she has so much dialogue, it's a lot of work and it's very intense for Brenda.
"So, like any job when you do a big stint where you finish it and you just think, 'I just need a break'
Riley wasn't in the country to watch Vera's series 12 finale at home, with him enjoying a trip to New York instead. However, he did enjoy a very proud moment when he spotted a Vera billboard in the Big Apple, to promote the launch of Vera's latest series on BritBox in the US.
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