This post contains spoilers for Tell Me Lies and Tell Me Lies season 2.
If you are not yet caught up with Tell Me Lies, this is your sign to do so. Season 3 is here, and we are so hooked.
Based on Carola Lovering's 2018 best-selling novel of the same name, the series, which premiered in 2022, follows the “tumultuous but intoxicating relationship” of Lucy Albright (Grace Van Patten) and Stephen DeMarco (Jackson White) over the course of eight years via dual timelines set in 2008 and 2015.
If you came here looking for a typical, feel-good rom-com, you've come to the wrong place; Tell Me Lies is more like a bumpy rollercoaster. “Although their relationship begins like any typical campus romance, they quickly fall into an addictive entanglement that will permanently alter not only their lives but the lives of everyone around them,” the official synopsis reads. Meaghan Oppenheimer serves as creator and executive producer for the show, the latter alongside Emma Roberts.
Following the success of the first offering, Tell Me Lies returned for a sophomore season this fall with more drama, more secrets, and more cliffhangers. While season 1 focused on Lucy and Stephen's romance, season 2 picked up as they returned to class right after their dramatic breakup at the beginning of summer. The story also expanded to feature more of the lives of the duo's friend group following the fallout from season 1. The season 2 finale, of course, ended with a tense cliffhanger and some tragic conclusion. Finally, season 3 is upon us – and, unsurprisingly, it's just as gripping as ever.
→ Plot
→ Cast
→ Release date
→ Trailer
→ Will there be a Tell Me Lies season 4?
What is Tell Me Lies season 3 about?
Season 2 of Tell Me Lies ended with some pretty intense cliffhangers — i.e. that wedding fallout and the death of Wrigley's brother, Drew.
As series creator Meaghan Oppenheimer explained: “By the third season, we will still have some 2008 because there’s stuff that we have to wrap up there. But I think it would be a little bit shifted in the sense that there will probably be more 2015 than 2008,” she told Variety. “We’ll get more and more of the future as time goes on.”
“I think there needs to be blood. Not literal blood," she said to Deadline ahead of the third season. "I think that a lot of people are rightfully very distraught at the end of this season, and I think some revenge needs to happen, or justice.”
She added: “There’s some justice that needs to be served. Just keeping it as exciting and surprising. And what I liked about this season was that it felt, to me at least, more emotionally vulnerable. And it kind of got at my gut in a different way this season, and it hit some sadder notes for me, which I liked. And so I think keeping the vulnerability that we found this season along with all of the toxic excitement and anxiety.”
So far, season 3 has been all about betrayal. And, against all odds, things are getting even worse for poor Lucy who continues to make some truly terrible, misguided choices. A lot of the action stems from Evan's one-night stand with Lucy – and continue to get messier and messier. We'll leave it at that and let you watch it all for yourself.
Where did Stephen and Lucy stand in the Tell Me Lies season 2 finale?
As a little recap, let's revisit that season 2 finale.
In the 2008 timelines, things appeared to be looking up (in a way) for Stephen and Lucy. Stephen has just broken up with Diana, and despite not being officially back together, the duo did hook up at the end of the season — the only problem is Lucy immediately after wants to get back with her ex Leo (Thomas Doherty), so she runs to him and also hooks up with him while wearing the same underwear. This ultimately causes a violent fight between Stephen and Leo at a party.
Stephen and Lucy appear to be back together, but Evan has a little nugget of info for Stephan: he cheated on Bree and slept with Lucy the year. After storming out upon the revelation, Stephen comes back and covertly records Evan's confession — which bridges the two timelines.
In the 2015 timeline, it's Bree and Evan's wedding day, and Lucy's heart is between Stephen and a new man named Max (Edmund Donovan), who just dumped her. Stephen is now engaged to Lucy's childhood friend, Lydia, but cheats on her with Lucy. Right before the big moment, Stephen sends Bree the recording of Evan confessing he cheated on her with Lucy, who is her bridesmaid. And that's where we left off.
“The work this man had to go through to just hold a bomb for eight years… so much work,” Van Patten, who plays Lucy, told The Hollywood Reporter about the move. “That just went beyond my expectations of how manipulative he actually was. I really couldn’t believe that. I was also shocked, and I’m so curious, what would be in Meaghan’s head for a third season and what the rest of that wedding would look like.”
Who is in Tell Me Lies season 3?
Jackson White and Grace Van Patten — who, by the way, are also dating IRL — return for season 3 of Tell Me Lies.
Other cast members reprising their roles in the third installment are Alicia Crowder (Diana), Branden Cook (Evan), Catherine Missal (Bree), Natalee Linez (Lydia), Sonia Mena (Pippa), and Spencer House (Wrigley).
One actor who did not make it to season 3 is Tom Ellis, who played Oliver in season 2. Speaking to Variety, Meaghan Oppenheimer, who also happens to be Ellis's wife IRL, confirmed that Tom Ellis wouldn't return as Oliver in season 3.
“I think Tom was just wanting to do one season. I think that we wrapped up his storyline in a way that really worked for me. I don’t know where else we would go after that with him,” she said about the character. “We kind of learned that Oliver is so broken and hollow by the end of this season that I’m ready for Bree to be done with him.”
However, in the same interview, Oppenheimer teased that Gabriella Pession might return as Oliver's wife Marianne since “there’s a lot more story to tell with her.”
When did Tell Me Lies season 3 come out?
Tell Me Lies season 3 debuted 13 January 2026 on Disney+ here in the UK. The remaining five episodes land on Tuesdays at 8am GMT through to 17 February.
Is there a Tell Me Lies season 3 trailer?
Yes! Here's a little taster before you dive into the full season.
Will there be a Tell Me Lies season 4?
While there's no official line about whether there will be a Tell Me Lies season 4, in January, showrunner Meaghan Oppenheimer told US Weekly that she "always thought" that season 3 would be "more or less the ending" she had in mind.
On 11th February, Spencer House, who plays Wrigley, told The Direct: “There’s always the chance that a show will create another season, and whether or not that happens, that remains to be seen for the audience,” adding: "I feel for me, Wrigley has been explored... [Though] I would love to dive into his relationship now with his parents."
We'll keep you posted when we know more.
This feature originally appeared on Teen Vogue.
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