There are plenty of must-see shows about extremely watchable mothers, but few in recent memory have been consumed as eagerly as HBO’s acclaimed murder mystery miniseries Big Little Lies, which premiered in 2017.
The California sunset-saturated masterpiece, an adaptation of Liane Moriarty’s bestselling novel of the same name, elevated dialogue about domestic abuse and gave viewers the delight of watching Laura Dern screaming and Reese Witherspoon puppeteering the social lives of Monterey’s residents. Sure, there were delicious rivalries, but it also turned out to be a powerful onscreen study of trauma.
The Golden Globes and the Emmy awards for the seven-episode first season just kept rolling in, and now the Monterey moms are coming back with that Big Mom Energy for more.
Here’s everything you need to know about Big Little Lies season 2.
When does Big Little Lies Season 2 premiere?
Season two of the HBO show will debut in June 2019. HBO announced the show’s highly anticipated return date in February at the 2019 TCA Awards, presented by the Television Critics Association.
Along with the happy news, HBO released a bunch of photos, raining down on the show’s fans like so much wine split between pals at an outdoor fire-pit bar. One thing was clear from the pictures: showdowns are expected.
This story will be updated with the Big Little Lies season 2 start date when it is announced.
How many episodes will there be in Big Little Lies Season 2?
Big Little Lies Season 2 will have seven episodes, just like the first season.
Who’s in the cast for Big Little Lies season 2?
You’re about to get coffee with all your old friends and frenemies again.
Here’s who’s back to reprise their roles from the original cast: Nicole Kidman as Celeste Wright, Reese Witherspoon as Madeline Martha Mackenzie, Shailene Woodley as Jane Chapman, Laura Dern as Renata Klein, Alexander Skarsgard as Perry (perhaps as a flashback, given that he died in the Season 1 finale) and Zoe Kravitz as Bonnie.
Also returning for a second season are Adam Scott as Ed; Jeffrey Nordling as Gordon, Renata’s husband; James Tupper as Nathan Carlson, Bonnie’s husband; Iain Armitage as Ziggy, Jane’s son; Kathryn Newton as Abigail Carlson, Madeline and Nathan’s rebellious daughter and Robin Weigert as Celeste and Perry’s therapist.
Meryl Streep will make her Lies debut as Mary Louise Wright, Perry’s mom, who’s demanding answers about how he perished.
The core crew is definitely getting along offscreen and seems to have a burning personal passion for the show.
Also on the newcomer front, we get Douglas Smith as Corey Brockfield, an aspiring marine biologist who will work with Jane.
Mo McRae will play Michael Perkins, a new teacher at Otter Bay Elementary, where things got hectic in the first season.
Jean-Marc Vallée directed every episode of Lies for season one, but this time around he’ll be an executive producer. The show moves on to a different director, Andrea Arnold, whose TV credits include I Love Dick and Transparent. Arnold, who also directed the movies Fish Tank and American Honey, will helm all seven episodes.
What do we know about the plot of Big Little Lies season 2?
Fans would have kept watching even if the ladies were just hanging out on the beach, as they do at the end of Season 1. But in Season 2, these California queens have things to do. The show wrapped up the story from the novel on which it is based, but the story will expand beyond it in its next season.
Season 2, which finished up production last August, will reportedly go darker and deeper. According to HBO:
The subversive, darkly comedic drama Big Little Lies will explore the malignancy of lies, the durability of friendships, the fragility of marriage and, of course, the vicious ferocity of sound parenting. Relationships will fray, loyalties will erode … the potential for emotional and bodily injury shall loom.
The show was lauded for adding layers of depth to its story of feuds and murder. But it sounds like the beautiful sisterhood forged in the wake of all that barely repressed rage hasn’t lasted.
Apparently, there’s a scene in which Madeline throws ice cream at Perry’s mother, which sounds like a treat.
According to Deadline, Bonnie’s got some more processing to do about her role in what happened to Perry in Season 1, and Renata’s facing marital troubles.
One thing to bank on is that this is not a show about a bunch of women who simply orbit around a major player. This series allows them each to be a protagonist in their own narratives.
Is there a Big Little Lies Season 2 trailer yet?
There’s no trailer yet, but fans got a glimpse on Feb. 24 when HBO debuted some brand new footage from Big Little Lies Season 2 in a promotional hype video teasing looks at Game of Thrones, His Dark Materials and Veep.
From the looks of it, Streep’s character, Perry’s mother, will arrive to dig into the mystery of what happened the night of the school fundraiser that claimed the life of Celeste’s abusive husband. “I want to know what happened that night,” Mary Louise Wright says to one of the moms. And blessedly, we’re getting at least one deeply cathartic Renata scream, one of the show’s main draws.
I’m ready. Now how can I catch up on Big Little Lies before Season 2?
HBO, the home of Big Little Lies, provides a few different ways to watch Season 1. Cord cutters can take advantage of their free one-month trial and binge the show on their streaming site. If you’re an HBO subscriber, you can stream the show for free on HBO GO on your television at home or your mobile device. Another option: sign up for HBO Now, which offers unlimited access to every HBO show with a satellite or cable subscription.
If you’re an Amazon viewer, you can stream season one in its entirely on Amazon Channels. And if you’re an HBO subscriber it’s free. Don’t subscribe? You can absolutely still watch by forking over $3.99 per episode.
You can also buy it on iTunes for $22.99 and take the mom squad with you on the go.
And when the show comes back, you can either subscribe to HBO to watch it live each week or sign up for Hulu’s streaming plan for $14.99 a month to watch Big Little Lies on multiple devices.
