After years of speculation, Reese Witherspoon has confirmed that the third season of Big Little Lies is officially “in process.” The actress and producer appeared on The Tonight Show to discuss the 25th anniversary of Legally Blonde, and took the opportunity to hint at what’s to come from new episodes based on Liane Moriarty’s writing.
“It is in process for sure,” Witherspoon told host Jimmy Fallon after some prompting. “There is a new book that comes out in September and so you’ll see where we’re at. And we are making the TV based on that book. I don’t want to say the wrong thing, but I think it’s called Big Little Truths? One Giant Lie? Giant Big Lies?”
The first season of Big Little Lies premiered in 2017. It starred Witherspoon alongside Nicole Kidman, Shailene Woodley, Alexander Skarsgard, Adam Scott, Laura Dern, and Zoe Kravitz. A second season followed in 2019 with the addition of Meryl Streep based on a a novella Moriarty wrote as a template for the script.
Earlier this year, Witherspoon told USA Today the team was “in early talks” about an additional season. “The children have grown up, they’re now teenagers, it’s been about 10 years,” she noted of the characters. “As you can imagine, parenting those age children’s got its sets of challenges.”
Woodley also recently hinted at a return. “What I know about it is that supposedly it is happening,” she told Deadline. “That is what I know.” She noted of the cast, “I love my girls. That’s what makes it so special. We’re each other’s people. We love each other and we’re here for each other and, also, it’s a blast to play these characters. I’m really excited about the third season, and for the opportunity that might exist in exploring who these ladies are 10 years later. We’re all 10 years older. The children are all 10 years older. They’re not really children anymore and most of them are adults now. So the prospect of that is very cool.”
Moriarty’s new novel, a sequel to 2014 Big Little Lies, is titled Big Little Truths. It will be released in the U.S. on Aug. 25. A description reads: “When a stranger begins lurking around the school asking supposedly innocent questions, this tightly connected group of women must finally face the full repercussions of the big little truths they have and haven’t shared with their kids.”
