International film media are reporting the acclaimed television crime drama, co-written and directed by Oscar-winning New Zealander Jane Campion, has been given the green light for a second season.
The news has been welcomed by Queenstown film and tourism bosses, but doubts remain over where the series will be shot.
Glenorchy resident and former Queenstown Lakes District councillor Christine Kelly, who worked with Campion on the first series as a child and animal wrangler, told the Otago Daily Times she understood that ''if a series two should eventuate, it will be based and shot in Sydney''.
The six-part series, which was nominated for eight Emmys and won one for best cinematography for a TV movie or mini-series, screened in New Zealand last year.
It was shot over four months at locations in and around Glenorchy and Queenstown in early 2012, and involved up to 200 cast and crew members.
Australian and British film and TV company See-Saw will again produce the series, which BBC2 has commissioned.
Film Otago Southland executive manager Kevin Jennings said the reports of the second series were good news, following ''whispers''.
It was ''early days'' to be talking about economic benefits for Glenorchy and Queenstown.
''Often times you don't know if a sequel will be filmed in the same place.
''But any time a production of this level comes to town, it's a win not only for the film industry, but also for the wider community: accommodation, bars, restaurants, hardware stores, all of that trickles down into the community.''
Destination Queenstown chairman Mark Quickfall said the series had followed the success of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit films in raising awareness of the area among potential visitors.
With the final Hobbit film set to be released at the end of the year, a second series of Top of the Lake, if filmed in Glenorchy and Queenstown, would be well timed, he said.
