"You can’t kill Tommy!"

The bumper 'Peaky Blinders' final episode aired two nights ago as the series' parting shot after nine years on our screens.

While season six received mixed reviews from fans tuning in each Sunday night, critics were overwhelmingly positive of the final six episodes of the crime/action drama. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a glowing 100% critics consensus.

The season finale, entitled 'Lock And Key', saw a dramatic shoot-out, the avenging of Aunt Polly (the late Helen McCrory), and more than one near-death experience for leading character Tommy (Cillian Murphy). However, everything ended on a relatively positive note, with Tommy figuring out that he's alive and kicking, and he rides off into the sunset on his white stallion; a scene alluding to his introduction in season one.

But now that the feature-length episode is done and dusted - and tied up most of the loose ends - what's next for Tommy et al? Even though it ended on a high note, there's still a feature film in the pipeline.

Speaking with Deadline about the season finale, series creator Steven Knight also spoke about his plans for the upcoming spin-off. First, on that dramatic ending Knight said: "You can’t kill Tommy! It’s good the fact that it’s the last episode 'cause people think he might actually die, whereas if there’s another series… you know what I mean?

"In my mind, there were other ways for it to go. I mean I never thought that Tommy would die, but there were other ways for him to survive as well."

Knight says that as 'Peaky Blinders' treaded ever closer towards World War II, but never actually reaching that point, the upcoming film will place the characters smack bang in the middle of that tumultuous period in time.

He continued: "The thing is that when I’m writing anything, but particularly 'Peaky', I tend to not have a plan except something very, very broad. So for the film, it’s actually set in World War II which I think I probably wouldn’t have done for series seven; I’d have probably taken it up to the war but because it’s a movie then I think we need a sort of gear change."

He also says the film will pave the way for the newer generation to step into the spotlight, such as Duke (played by Conrad Khan) and Isiah (Daryl McCormack). However, the older members of the cast will still feature.

"What I want to do is have this new generation come through. I’m really interested in Duke, I’m really interested in Isiah and just watching a new generation come through but with the older generation still there," Knight said. "Certain people will come to the front, and I like the idea of wartime, or post-war Britain, cause it’s a very different landscape and I think it would be great to explore that. It brings a whole new look, and people dress differently and act differently so it will be interesting."

The 'Peaky Blinders' final season aired on BBC One. The season will hit Netflix internationally on June 10.