'Normal People' Season 2: Everything We Know
Long live the Sally Rooney hype.
Call it hype or call it brilliance, but Sally Rooney’s reign is far from over. After the adaptation of the author’s award-winning, bestselling novel Normal People hit Hulu on April 29, fans are already clamoring for a follow-up to the 12-part series, which stars Paul Mescal and Daisy Edgar-Jones as the show’s protagonist lovers, Connell and Marianne.
The showrunners have made no promises to deliver a second season—yet—but if Rooney’s staunch defenders have anything to say about it, there’s always a glimmer of hope. Here, everything we know so far about Normal People season two. (Warning: There are, naturally, a few spoilers about the book and show ahead.)
Connell and Marianne’s story definitely has more to it.
After watching the young lovers from Sligo weave in and out of each other's lives over the course of high school and university, we still don't know their fate when the series cuts off. At the end of the show, we watch Marianne pack up her room and Connell plans to head to New York. Will they be endgame? Will we get more steamy scenes between the two? It's unclear. They're still young, and they both clearly have traumas they've yet to deal with. There are decades worth of stories the series could choose to pursue if they decide to make a second season.
Daisy Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal star as Marianne and Connell in Normal People.
Sally Rooney has expressed interest in future adaptations of her books.
Rooney’s first novel, Conversations With Friends, is set to receive a BBC adaptation, so it’s clear Rooney is still excited to work with the studio. She was heavily involved with the Normal People adaptation—she scripted nearly half of the series herself—so it’s not out of the question that she would work on a second season. Perhaps even a second novel?
Normal People’s stars would be willing to get involved in a follow-up.
In an interview with NME, Mescal said, “Series one is the book. But we don’t know what’s on the other side. The great thing about these two characters is that their lives continue.”
“I put my hand up and say I’d play Connell until the cows come home,” Mescal told the Radio Times. Edgar-Jones responded, “Same!”
At least one director is hopeful for more.
Lenny Abrahamson, one of two directors on the series, told the Radio Times that he’d be eager to work on a second season that explores where Connell and Marianne's relationship ends up 10 years later.
“I have a fantasy of doing a kind of ten year seeing where they are in ten years time sort of thing, if I’m not too decrepit at that point,” he said.
So, is there an anticipated release date?
There's no release date at this point for a potential season 2, but if the series draws as much success as its source material, there's plenty of room for more Rooney in our hearts.
Normal People premieres on Hulu Wednesday, April 29. Sign up for a free trial here
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