Its stunning setting and gripping plot held viewers across the world captive from the start - and now Fortitude is back with another pacy helping of grit, crime and turmoil. Gemma Dunn catches up with newcomer Dennis Quaid

It was one of 2015's biggest TV hits, and with a second season about to land, Fortitude - the gripping Arctic thriller centred on a deadly fictional town - is on the hunt for its next batch of sightseers.

"How can the coldest place on Earth create such warm memories?" asks cast newbie Dennis Quaid, in Sky Atlantic's chilling new promo video. "Go and experience the warmth of this charming little town for yourself and freeze your precious memories in the ice. You will feel so at home, you'll never leave..."

But don't be fooled.

For while icy vistas and roaring volcanoes make for a breathtaking backdrop, viewers who enjoyed the first run (1.69 million a week, to be exact) have witnessed the turmoil - and murderous shocks - beneath the mask. And for its lively locals, little is about to change.

As we rejoin the island, perched on the Arctic Circle, the residents have overcome the parasites that previously tore their peaceful community apart. But their respite from chaos is set to be short-lived, with the mainland cutting off funding and supplies, a threadbare police force, and another mysterious death rocking the community.

Quaid - who joins cast members Richard Dormer and Sofie Grabol, alongside fellow newcomers Ken Stott (The Missing), Parminder Nagra (The Blacklist), Robert Sheehan (Misfits) and Michelle Fairley (Game Of Thrones) - invites us to take a closer look...

Pegged as Sky Atlantic's most ambitious project yet, it didn't take the Texas-born star - whose previous credits include movies The Parent Trap, Far From Heaven and The Big Easy - much convincing to join the international cast. In fact, he was sold after watching just one episode.

"The imagery was incredible, the actors were really good, and it seemed to be centred around the characters and a story that even the characters didn't understand," the 62-year-old says of the big-budget hit. "It's the kind of show I like to watch."

The format appealed too, with Quaid admitting he was looking for something with a beginning, middle and end.

"It's more like doing a long film, in a way," he elaborates, describing the role as a career highlight. "Certainly, I feel like it's the best thing I've done on television so far. It's the most memorable and I had a really great time. I'm so proud to be a part of it."

Quaid plays Michael Lennox - a fisherman in search of a lucrative King Crab catch, in order to bring in some desperately needed money for him and his ailing wife Freya Fairley.

"I guess he's an expat from the US," notes the father-of-three (he has a son, the 24-year-old actor Jack Quaid, with ex-wife Meg Ryan). "He's been here for quite a long time - enough to marry a girl and have kids.

"His wife is going through health problems, which is life-changing for everyone, and it's his mission to save the love of his life," he adds. "He's a man whose entire identity has been shattered; he has to rebuild and hold on to those things which are most dear to him.

"There's an art to the character, he has great challenges," adds Quaid, who insists it's a task made easier by the camaraderie between the stellar cast.

"It's truly an ensemble piece. Everyone puts their ego aside and really works together. It reminds me of when I first started out, to tell you the truth. It keeps fire in your belly."

The setting, with its wilderness and stark environment, can't go unmentioned. "I'm playing a fisherman, so I worked it so I could go out on the Arctic Sea for research. How many times do you have a chance to do that?" Quaid exclaims. "It was just glorious. When it came time to shoot, we're out there and I'm piloting the boat, the entire crew was on there and I think I was the only one who didn't get seasick, which may speak to my piloting skills."

But there were hairy moments amid the Nordic noir, the actor admits: "Just getting to work could be daunting. We had to take what they call a 'Super Jeep' every day, it was a wild ride. I love being in locations like that," he adds, confessing to "doing all that stuff the insurance company says: 'Don't you dare do! It's one of the most fascinating, exotic places. I say that Iceland is like Hawaii in the Arctic."

Recognised worldwide - "If you've done 100 movies, you've been around for 40 years, somebody's grandmother knows me" - Quaid is no stranger to screen time. And the divide between TV and film, he says, is one that's closing fast.

"It used to be quite a wide gap for actors who were doing film," he observes. "They didn't really want to do television, because of the care and quality of the writing and production. But since about five years ago, that's all changed. It's the new independent film, only hopefully following a 50-hour format over five seasons," he continues of small-screen work. "It gives them a great chance to unfold a character and do some very interesting work."

Would he be up for another season of Fortitude then, his character's life permitting? "I'd be willing to start next week!" Quaid replies instantly. "Sky is really positioned very well, because one of the attractions of coming to do Fortitude was, as well as the great story and great script, to be in another market. TV's becoming more international in the States - not as much as it has been over here in Europe - but you have shows which are subtitled and yet a lot of people are watching."

Fortitude returns to Sky Atlantic on Thursday, January 26. All episodes will be available exclusively on Sky Box Sets