Season 2 (2024)

Season 2 of Cruel Summer was announced on June 15, 2021,^[2] and premiered on June 5, 2023, with a special two-episode premiere at 9 p.m. ET/PT, before the show transitions to its normal timeslot at 10 p.m^[1], and concluding on July 31, 2023.

Synopsis[]

Set in an idyllic waterfront town in the Pacific Northwest, the next chapter of “Cruel Summer” follows the rise and fall of an intense teenage friendship. 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.^[3]

Cast[]

Starring[]

• Sadie Stanley as Megan Landry^[3] (10/10)
• Lexi Underwood^[4] as Isabella LaRue,^[5] (10/10)
• Griffin Gluck as Luke Chambers^[3] (10/10)
• Lisa Yamada as Parker Tanaka^[3] (8/10)
• Sean Blakemore as Sheriff Jack Myer (8/10)
• KaDee Strickland as Debbie Landry (8/10)

Guest Starring[]

• Paul Adelstein as Steve Chambers^[6] (9/10)
• Braeden De La Garza as Brent Chambers^[6]
• Nile Bullock as Jeff Pope (9/10)

Co-Starring[]

• Jenna Lamb as Lily Landry^[6]

Episodes[]

#	Image	Title	Air Date	Writer	Director
1		Welcome to Chatham[7]	June 5, 2023	Elle Triedman & Tia Napolitano	Bill Purple
		In Summer 1999, small-town computer genius Megan resents the arrival of outgoing and mysterious foreign exchange student Isabella. Little does she know, her life will change by Summer 2000.
2		Ride or Die[7]	June 5, 2023	Matt Morgan[8]	Laura Nisbet-Peters
		In Summer 1999, Isabella grows closer to Luke, while struggling to connect with Megan. In Winter 1999, Isabella searches for justice following the disastrous Christmas party.
3		Bloody Knuckles[9]	June 12, 2023	Heather F. Robb[8]	Bill Purple
		In Summer 1999, Megan and Isabella bond during an overnight at the Chambers' cabin. Luke tries to stand up to Brent, but ends up causing more problems for his dad. Suspicions are raised after fingerprints are found on the gun that shot Luke.
4		Springing a Leak[10]	June 19, 2023	Elle Triedman[8]	Ben Hernandez Bray
		In Summer 1999, Megan wants to be adventurous and makes fake IDs for the gang. In Winter 1999, a burst pipe leads the Landrys and Isabella to a messy night at the Chambers house. Isabella wants to help, but is met with resistance from Megan.
5		All I Want for Christmas[11]	June 26, 2023	Heather Thomason[8]	Hiromi Kamata
		In Summer 1999, Isabella is rocked by a surprise visit from her past. In Winter 1999, Isabella's concerns for Megan lead her to some surprising news. In Summer 2000, family loyalties are tested.
6		The Plunge[12]	July 3, 2023	Jason Sack[8]	Laura Nisbet-Peters
		In Summer 1999, sparks fly at Luke's birthday party. In Winter 1999, relationships are tested as Megan becomes more distant from Luke. In Summer 2000, Megan obsessed over an interesting letter she received.
7		It's the End of the World[12]	July 10, 2023	Matt Morgan & Elle Triedman[8]	Bill Purple
		In Winter 1999, tensions are high on Y2K. At the New Years Eve party, a not-so-secret conversation changes the lives of the trio forever. In Summer 2000, suspicion falls on Ned after some new evidence from summer 1999 comes to light.
8		Confess Your Sins[12]	July 17, 2023	Heather Thomason & Diana Glogau[8]	Ben Hernandez Bray
		In Summer 1999, new friendships are formed and secrets are kept as the crew approaches senior year at the annual school car wash. In Winter 1999, Megan and Isabella push for answers. In Summer 2000, Debbie wants to protect her daughter.
9		The Miseducation of Luke Chambers[12]	July 24, 2023	Elle Triedman[8]	Laura Nisbet-Peters
		Luke examines all his relationships and worries that the pressures of being a “Chambers man” have changed him.
10		Endgame[12]	July 31, 2023	Elle Triedman[8]	Bill Purple
		As timelines collide, friendships implode, new evidence emerges and the shocking truth is revealed … in more ways than one.

Viewership[]

Season two debuted with a dual-episode premiere of "Welcome to Chatham" and "Ride or Die". In live + same day ratings, "Welcome to Chatham" averaged 223,000 viewers with a 0.08 demographic. It dipped 18.61% in viewership and 27.27% in demographic from its previous seasons finale. "Ride or Die" saw a -47.98% dip in viewership (116,000) and -50.00% dip in demographic (0.04).^[13]

After seven days of delayed viewing, "Welcome to Chatham" jumped to 2.6 million viewers across linear and digital platforms. This is up 1,000% from its live+SD viewings (223,000) to multiplatform over seven days (2,574,000). This rating makes it Freeform's number one telecast in two years, since the Cruel Summer Season 1 finale. Its dual-episode premiere averaged 2.3 million total viewers, making it Freeform's most-watched season two series of all-time and Freeform's No. 1 current series.^[14]

Cruel Summer season two owes much of it success to its Hulu viewership. The first two episodes of the season were the most-watched scripted TV episodes on Hulu in its initial week available.^[15] "Cruel Summer" also remains Freeform's number one series on Hulu.^[14]

Production[]

Production for the second season began on March 8, 2022, and on April 21, 2022,^[16] it was announced filming had officially began. The show filmed in Richmond, British Columbia and wrapped filming on September 7, 2022.^[17]

Notes and Trivia[]

• Freeform renewed "Cruel Summer," for season two, ahead of the season one finale which aired, June 15, 2021.^[2]
  • The season renewal was teased in a post credit scene after the season one finale.
• This season marks the series as an anthology, with a whole new, fresh set of characters and stories to tell.
  • The events of the season were initially advertised as taking place in 1999, 2000, and 2001, as revealed by the Cruel Summer Instagram account promos when an error code containing the years appears after sending an instant message.^[18]
  • However, showrunner Elle Triedman retconned these years. The events of Season 2 take place in the summer of 1999, winter 1999, and summer 2000.^[19]
• The new showrunner for the season is Elle Triedman.^[3]
• On July 6, 2021 Bert V. Royal exited the series.^[20]
  • Tia Napolitano also exited as showrunner but remained as an executive producer.
  • “Renewing ‘Cruel Summer’ for a season two was an easy decision,” stated Duncan. “It’s the biggest series debut in Freeform’s history, and the audience response has been overwhelmingly positive. Jessica, Michelle and Tia did a phenomenal job telling an addictive story that’s tapped into the cultural zeitgeist. I’m excited to see where they take the series next.”^[2]
  • “Collaborating with Iron Ocean, our dedicated crew, charismatic cast, and our partners at Freeform and eOne have been the best first show running experience I could ask for. I am beyond grateful and excited by the amazing fan response to our show! Continuing to bottle ‘Cruel Summer’ magic for a season two is an absolute dream come true,” says Tia Napolitano.^[2]
  • “We are so proud of this show and the incredible cast and crew who brought so much hard work and grit to every single scene. This wouldn’t have been possible without them and our mastermind showrunner, Tia Napolitano. To be picked up for a second season is a dream, and we have so many ideas for where we can take this next. We are excited to get to work with our brilliant team of creatives on this project, in addition to our partners at Freeform and eOne, including Jackie Sacerio, who brought the project to us. To the audiences who have been tuning into this show week in and week out, THANK YOU!!! This is all for you!” added executive producers Jessica Biel and Michelle Purple of Iron Ocean Productions.^[2]
• Production on the season began on March 8, 2022, with filming starting on April 21, 2022^[21][16] and concluded on September 7, 2022.^[17]
• Eloise Payet was initially cast in the role of Isabella LaRue^[3], though following the first table read, the role was recast to Lexi Underwood.^[4]
• Ray Strachan will have a role in this season, though his capacity and role are unknown.^[22]
• The first teaser trailer for the season was released on Instagram on April 28, 2023. It can be viewed here.
• On May 16, 2023, series star Lisa Yamada did an interview with Sweety High about her character Parker Tanaka and spoke about what fans can expect from the second season.^[23]
  • She revealed that her character is the stepdaughter of Sheriff Jack Myer and the girlfriend of Brent Chambers, and that Parker feels threatened when Isabella joins their friend group. She makes an unlikely alliance-turned-friendship with Isabella as the season progresses.^[23]
  • The season is a whodunit set in three time periods, with each episode taking viewers on a different journey.^[23]
• Ten days after the Season 2 trailer premiered, it amassed an estimated 24 million views across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube. According to Deadline, it is on track to becoming network’s most-watched trailer ever, surpassing the total views over the same time period for Cruel Summer Season 1, as well as Freeform’s other thriller series, The Watchful Eye.^[24]
• On May 24, 2023, guest star Nile Bullock did an interview with Cultress about his character Jeff and spoke about what fans can expect from the second season.^[25]
  • His character, Jeff, fits into the story because he's in the friend group and is "always recording". His camera picks up a lot, leading him to have an important role in the series.^[25]
  • The season tediously unravels the mystery similar to that of the first season.^[25]
• Lexi Underwood was able to bring one of her personal hair stylists, Marva Stokes to the set. They decided together to use wigs for the series, and Marva made all of the wigs and worked with the set's main styles to create the looks. She teased the looks saying, "The summer look is very summer. It's bright. It's fun. The winter looks are a little bit more polished and mature looking."^[26]
  • She cherished the protective styles that the wigs gave her, because it allowed her real hair to grow.^[26]
• Sadie Stanley teased that the events of the series are "life-changing" which makes the stakes "really high" compared to Season 1.^[27]
• During the Winter TCA's, Jessica Biel and Michelle Purple spoke about the series.^[28]
  • When asked about the anthology route, they explained they, "didn’t find that it would have the legs it would have if we just did the anthology."^[28]
  • There is an easter egg to Season 1 somewhere, though Jessica Biel and Michelle Purple refused to say where.^[28]
  • While Kate and Jeanette were at odds throughout their season, Megan and Isabella's friendship is much deeper and more complicated. They "really wanted to explore loyalty and what happens when two young women are extremely close and then something drives a wedge between them.”^[28]
  • Technology and the uncertain future around Y2K plays a big role in the characters lives.^[28]

Gallery[]

Posters[]

Character Posters[]

Promotional[]

Videos[]

Behind the Scenes[]

Events[]

Cast PR photoshoot.

Season 2 premiere carpet and party.

References[]