Content warning: The following story contains spoilers for “Heartstopper” season two.
“Heartstopper” season two is here, but some fans might already have their eyes turned toward the next installment. The series, created and written by Alice Oseman from her series of graphic novels, follows Nick (Kit Connor) and Charlie (Joe Locke), two British teens who fall in love after meeting at school. The show grapples with their struggles to explore their relationship (and themselves) in an environment that can be less than accepting toward LGBTQ+ people. The ensemble cast includes Charlie’s besties Elle (Yasmin Finney), Tao (William Gao), and Isaac (Tobie Donovan), as well as other classmates and friends, including Tara (Corinna Brown), Darcy (Kizzy Edgell), Imogen (Rhea Norwood), and Sahar (Leila Khan).
Back in May 2022, Netflix renewed “Heartstopper” for seasons two and three. Oseman said in an interview this May with Hello! magazine that they do know how the series will ultimately bring everyone’s stories to a close. “I definitely have an end point in mind, just because I know what’s going to happen in the whole story, [and] because I’ve got the comics planned out,” they said. “And I imagine four seasons would see out the whole story of ‘Heartstopper.'” For now, whether the show will get renewed for that fourth season remains a mystery.
Here’s what we know about season three so far.
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"Heartstopper" Season 3 Cast
Presumably, Connor, Locke, Finney, Gao, Donovan, Brown, Edgell, Norwood, and Khan will all be back for season three. Sebastian Croft’s Ben tells Charlie toward the end of season two that he’s leaving their school, so it seems he won’t be around for more episodes, but fans can probably expect to see most of the main casts’ schoolmates next season. The season finale also teased that we’ll see more of Higgs teachers Mr. Ajayi (Fisayo Akinade) and Mr. Farouk (Nima Taleghani). Season three will presumably also see the return of Oscar winner Olivia Colman as Nick’s mom.
Netflix / Samuel Dore
"Heartstopper" Season 3 Plot
Season two covered the second and third volumes of Oseman’s novel, so the third season will potentially cover parts of volumes four and five. Volume four, released in January 2022, follows Nick and Charlie during the summer and the start of a new school. A big part of the plot of the volume is Nick trying to support Charlie as he struggles with an eating disorder, which is referenced in season two. As for what happens in volume five, the book won’t be released until this December.
Netflix / Teddy Cavendish/Netflix
"Heartstopper" Season 3 Release Date
Interestingly, “Heartstopper” might be one of the only shows that can continue amid the writers and actors strikes. “Heartstopper” is produced by British-Australian film and television production company See-Saw Films, which means the contracts do not involve the American labor unions and their current contract disputes.
On July 19, Oseman shared on Instagram, “I’m . . . hard at work this summer writing the scripts for season 3 of the ‘Heartstopper’ TV show.” So it seems “Heartstopper” is not affected by strikes as of right now. The cast and crew could film a third season soon and release it in 2024.
