The women of Monterey, Calif., and all of their dark secrets, are heading back to the small screen. Season 3 of HBO’s hit drama Big Little Lies is officially in the works, more than five years after the series wrapped up its sophomore season in 2019.
The HBO series, which premiered in 2017 and is based on the 2014 Liane Moriarty novel of the same name, stars Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern, Shailene Woodley and Zoë Kravitz as mothers who are forced to protect one another after an untimely death. Originally set to be a limited series, fan (and cast) excitement over the show led to a second season — and while a third has been long-discussed, there was no concrete news that it would happen … until now.
In an Instagram video captured at an undisclosed fan event in November 2023, Kidman teased that the women could return for a third season — but things only became real on Sept. 11, 2025, when Deadline reported that writer Francesca Sloane had come on board to write the first episode of the third season, currently in development at HBO. Sloane will executive produce the series alongside creator David. E. Kelley.
The news comes after the 2021 death of Jean-Marc Vallée, who directed the entire first season of the show and was an executive producer in Season 2. Kravitz previously said in a 2022 interview with GQ that his “heartbreaking” death halted any talks of continuing the show.
With development underway, more news will surely come out about what the Monterey crew is getting up to. (Which, if we know anything about the show, is nothing good.) Here’s what to know.
Who is returning for ‘Big Little Lies’ Season 3?
Witherspoon, who plays ringleader mom Madeline, and Kidman, who portrays domestic abuse survivor Celeste, will both reprise their roles on Big Little Lies. Woodley, who plays Monterey newcomer Jane, took to Instagram to share a photo of herself alongside Dern and Kravitz with the words “we are so back,” hinting that they also would be participating — however, nothing is official just yet.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly in February 2024, Dern expressed hope for a third season. “I can tell you that all of us who are involved in it would never imagine a better time,” Dern said. “We love each other so much and would have the time of our life being back together, and we love our characters so much. I truly know what you know. But I know that it is something that they are working diligently at dreaming up, and I sure hope it comes to fruition.”
Other fan favorites who we do not know will return yet include Meryl Streep, who played Celeste’s mother-in-law in Season 2 of the series, as well as Severance actor Adam Scott, who plays Madeline’s husband, Ed.
Is Season 3 of ‘Big Little Lies’ based on a book?
Season 1 of Big Little Lies followed Moriarty’s book and expanded upon the story for its second season, which was written by Kelley. (Moriarty received a “story by” credit on the episodes.) Now, the author is penning a new novel for the show to use as adaptation material.
In October 2024, Witherspoon told E! News on the red carpet of Hello Sunshine’s Shine Away conference that they are waiting for Moriarty to release a new story about the women. “She’s going to be turning in something very soon,” Witherspoon said at the time. “We’re back to the original author and we’re going to go back to the original characters.”
Casey Bloys, HBO’s chairman, told Deadline in November 2024 that Moriarty, who also penned the book Apples Never Fall, is working on that book’s sequel, which will become the basis for the new season. “We’re all waiting for the book, which I believe is coming soon, but I do not have a copy in my hands,” he said at the time.
In a June 2025 conversation with People, Kelley noted that the interest in the new season is a “credit” to the author. “And she’s written another book that season 3 will be based on,” he said. “It’s a pretty good collection of talent.” He also confirmed that no one was under contract to do the third season at the time.
The book is expected to drop in 2026, per Deadline.
What will Season 3 of ‘Big Little Lies’ be about?
Season 2 of Big Little Lies picked up after the fateful night of the costume party, in which Bonnie (Kravitz) pushed Celeste’s abusive husband, Perry (Alexander Skarsgard), down the stairs to his death. The women scrambled to protect one another as Perry’s mother (Streep) suspected foul play. In the end, Bonnie chose to turn herself in for the crime, with the other women by her side as she entered the police station.
While we don’t know what the third season will be about, Witherspoon teased what might be in store for the moms during her Sept. 11 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
“It’s been about 10 years, maybe nine years,” she said. “All those little kids [in the show] were in second grade, they’re all teenagers now. Being a mom of a teenager, there’s a lot of big little lies.”
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