Freeform's 'Cruel Summer' Season 2 Confirmed — Details

Freeform’s thriller series Cruel Summer is keeping fans on the edge of their seats, but viewers want to know if there’s more to come. In June 2021, Freeform announced that there’s officially a second season on the way!

“Renewing ‘Cruel Summer’ for a season 2 was an easy decision,” Freeform President Tara Duncan said in a statement. “It’s the biggest series debut in Freeform’s history, and the audience response has been overwhelming. [Producers] Jessica [Biel], Michelle [Purple], and Tia [Napolitano] did a phenomenal job pushing the boundaries in terms of genre and storytelling, and it’s incredible to see how it’s hit the cultural zeitgeist in such a significant way. I’m excited to see where they take the series next.”

The show, which premiered in April 2021, stars Olivia Holt, Froy Gutierrez, Chiara Aurelia, Harley Quinn Smith, Allius Barnes, Blake Lee, Michael Landes, Brooklyn Sudano and more. “Taking place over three summers in the ‘90s when a popular teen goes missing, and a seemingly unrelated girl transforms from a sweet and awkward outlier to the most popular girl in town, eventually becoming the most despised person in America,” the synopsis of the premiere episode read prior to its release.

“It really shines a light on the complex part of being a teenager and trying to figure out who you are and the midst of a million things that are going on,” Olivia said of the series during the Television Critics Association panel in February 2021, per Deadline. Aside from the mystery aspect, Cruel Summer showcases every aspect of being a teenager, including both friend and boy drama.

Following its premiere episode, Deadline reported that Cruel Summer was the network’s biggest multi-platform premiere in its history. With the show’s continued success, there’s sure to be some pretty wild mysteries to come from the fictional Skylin, Texas.

“Something that really drew me in was the female representation of the two female leads to the female creatives behind this project,” Olivia said during an April 2021 interview with TV Guide. “I definitely think that we need more of that. I know that when I was a kid I didn’t really see a lot of that on screen. I’m very grateful to be a part of this.”

This time around, the show will have an all new cast of characters, announced in April 2022. Sadie Stanley, Lexi Underwood, Griffin Gluck, KaDee Strickland, Lisa Yamada, Sean Blakemore and Paul Adelstein were all revealed to be cast members for the show’s second season.

Scroll through our gallery for everything we know about Cruel Summer season 2 so far.

Love J-14? Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for fun, exclusive videos with your favorite stars.

How Did Season 1 End?

During the season 1 finale, Jeanette and Kate finally met up to discuss the truth — which is that Jeanette did not see Kate in her kidnappers house. After it seems that the entire season was wrapped up nicely with each character moving on, it was revealed that Jeanette didn’t see Kate, but actually heard her in the house.

Reflecting on the Role

“We really wanted to execute the subject matters in the show as real and as raw as possible,” Olivia told ELLE in December 2021. “As creatives, we were given this brilliant opportunity to help educate our viewers about the issues we discuss in the show, and it’s really great to see the reaction and impact we’ve made just by the narrative we showcased on television.”

What Has the Cast Said?

“I feel like it could go in so many different directions and I’m excited to see what the creatives come up with. I feel like they have so many incredible and brilliant ideas, and I’m excited to see what they’re going to bring to the surface,” Olivia told Entertainment Tonight in June 2021. “If I’m being totally transparent, I don’t know where it goes.”

She added, “I think there’s more story for everybody. I think it could really go anywhere. With Kate, I think it could be really interesting to go down the route that the season left off on, with Kate thinking that Jeanette is totally innocent even though she’s not. I think that that route could be really interesting, but I don’t know. I’ve thought about it a hundred times and I am super open.”

Will There be a Season 2?

Freeform announced the show’s second season with a totally new cast! The second season will be set on an “an idyllic waterfront town in the Pacific Northwest,” according to a press release from Freeform.

“Approaching the story from three different timelines surrounding Y2K, the season twists and turns as it tracks the early friendship between Megan, Isabella and Megan’s best friend Luke, the love triangle that blossomed, and the mystery that would impact all of their lives going forward,” the announcement continued.

The New Stars

Sadie is set to star as Megan Landry, who is best friends with Isabella. “When events take a tragic turn, her long-held dreams are dashed, and she is left wondering who she can trust,” the press release read. Lexi joined the cast as Isabella, an exchange student who lives with Megan and her family, but has a big secret about why she chose their family.

Megan’s best friend Luke will be played by Griffin. While KaDee takes on the role of Megan’s mom.

‘Juicy’ Stories

“What I can tell you about the role [is] what the press release says,” Lexi told J-14 in May 2022. “Isabella is a new character coming into town. She is staying with Megan Landry — played by the incredible Sadie Stanley — for the summer, and she gets herself in a little bit of a love triangle with Luke — Griffin Gluck. … I’m really excited for everyone to see it.”

Spilling the TeaIs ‘Cruel Summer’ Returning for a Season 2? Freeform Confirms More Episodes Are on the Way