The mystery will continue in Monterey. Shailene Woodley, Laura Dern and Zoë Kravitz are officially set to reprise their roles when Big Little Lies returns with its seven-episode second season in 2019, HBO announced on Friday, February 16. The season 1 stars are set to join the already announced Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman, who will return as Madeline Martha Mackenzie and Celeste Wright, respectively.
The network also released new information about where the women will be when the season kicks off:
Jane Chapman (Woodley): While processing Perry’s sudden death, Jane is trying to build a new life for herself and Ziggy.
Renata Klein (Dern): The epitome of control, Renata is now faced with new challenges in her marriage.
Bonnie Carlson (Kravitz): Bonnie struggles with Perry’s death and is forced to face demons in her past.
Celeste Wright (Kidman): Reeling from her husband Perry’s death, Celeste is adrift, but determined to fight for her family and find the woman she once was.
Madeline Martha Mackenzie (Witherspoon): Finding that good intentions don’t always yield good consequences, Madeline confronts the truth of Perry’s death, while coming to terms with her own marriage and traditional notions of family.
As previously reported, Meryl Streep will also be joining the Emmy Award-winning drama as Mary Louise Wright, the mother of Perry, who arrives in Monterey because she’s concerned for the well-being of her grandchildren and wants answers.
Both Kidman and Witherspoon are also returning as executive producers. David E. Kelly will write the scripts based on Liane Moriarty’s story. Jean-Marc Vallée, who directed the first season, will return as an executive producer while Andrea Arnold will take over as director.
Season 2 will be subversive and dark and “will explore the malignancy of lies, the durability of friendships, the fragility of marriage and, of course, the vicious ferocity of sound parenting,” HBO revealed in an official logline. “Relationships will fray, loyalties will erode…the potential for emotional and bodily injury shall loom.”
Production begins in March 2018 with a premiere date in 2019.
