The Politician Season 3 Plot, Possible Returning Cast, Development Details And More

In Season 2 of Ryan Murphy's Netflix original "The Politician," Payton Hobart (Ben Platt) gets one major step closer to his dream of one day becoming president when he prevails in a hard-fought race for a New York State Senate seat. What's more, a time jump and twist at the very end of the finale sets up a third season that may see him get within spitting distance of becoming the most powerful person in the country.

Where will Payton's presidential ambitions lead him in Season 3, and how will it affect his relationships with his wife Alice (Julia Schlaepfer) and mother Georgina (Gwyneth Paltrow)? Will his political rival-turned-ally Dede Standish (Judith Light) become his rival once again? And when can we expect the third season to premiere? Though details are thin on the ground, there are still lots of tidbits we can parse out about the release date, cast, and plot of "The Politician" season 3 — and we're here to do just that.

As of this writing, neither Ryan Murphy nor Netflix have given a release date or release window for when "The Politician" Season 3 is expected to debut. However, Murphy has provided fans with one important piece of information that will be a bit disappointing for viewers eager to find out how Payton's story ends.

In an interview with Collider, Murphy was asked about his plans for the end of the series. Not only did he confirm that his plan is to end the show after Season 3, he also said, "I think where Season 2 ends, what I would love to do is take a couple of years off and have Ben Platt get a little bit older for his final race [...] I'm going to wait. Ben is young, so I want to wait a couple of years to figure out how we age him up a little bit. But that's always been my plan."

So, while "The Politician" is likely coming back for a final season at some point in the future, we will unfortunately be waiting for what sounds like literal years for that to happen.

In the final moments of Season 2 of "The Politician," the action jumps ahead two years. We learn that Georgina and Dede's presidential campaign was a success, and Payton is getting ready to run for his second term in the New York State Senate unopposed. Everything gets ramped up when he gets a visit from Dede, who has an exciting proposition for him. She confirms that Georgina only plans to serve as president for one term, leaving the door open for Dede to run for president herself four years in the future. And she wants Payton to be her VP when she does.

Ryan Murphy confirmed in his Collider interview that this future presidential race will be the focus of the series' final season, saying, "That would obviously be a presidential race, right? That's always what we had designed, and I think that's what our plan is." After two seasons of watching Payton scrap it out for smaller political positions, we'll be seeing him come close to achieving his life's goal. Considering how his previous two races went, we expect this presidential election to be full of betrayals and wild surprises.

Even though it will be a bit of a wait to get there, it sounds like "The Politician" is planning on serving its fans one heck of a final season.

A significant break between the second and third seasons of "The Politician" means there's some uncertainty about who will be returning to the show. One thing that feels all but certain, however, is that Ben Platt will reprise the role of Payton Hobart. After all, he is quite literally the titular politician. As for everyone else, most of the main characters from Season 2 seem poised to have significant roles in the show's third season, but the long gap may result in some actors not being able to return. As of now, it's too soon to tell.

That being said, it seems very likely that Julia Schlaepfer will return to play Alice Charles, Payton's wife. We also wouldn't be surprised to see Laura Dreyfuss, Zoey Deutch, Rahne Jones, and Theo Germaine, among others, return as members of Payton's inner circle.

Considering where the series leaves us at the end of Season 2, Judith Light also feels like a shoe-in to return as Vice President-Elect Dede Standish, as does Bette Midler as her Chief of Staff Hadassah Gold. And Gwyneth Paltrow will likely continue to pop in as Patyon's mother and the current President-Elect Georgina Hobart.

"The Politician" was created by the power trio that is Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, and Ian Brennan. They also serve as executive producers, directors, writers, and general masterminds. Murphy is a major force in Hollywood, and "The Politician" is a strong example of his whip-smart, cynical, and acerbically funny brand. The series' other directors do a great job of carrying out this vision.

In addition to Murphy, Falchuk, and Brennan, "The Politician" is directed by Gwyneth Horder-Payton (who's helmed four episodes, making her the most prolific "Politician" director of the bunch), Helen Hunt, Janet Mock, Tamra Davis, Tina Mabry, and David Petrarca. They've all been busy since Season 2 hit Netflix: Horder-Payton alone has worked on "Rabbit Hole," "Welcome to Chippendales," "The Patient," "Pam & Tommy," and "Big Sky." Still, there's a significant chance she, and the other directors, will return for more episodes of "The Politician."

"The Politician" is rated TV-14. Season 3 will almost certainly earn the same label. What does it mean for a show to be rated TV-14, you ask? Essentially, it means that it contains material most people agree kids under 14 might not be able to handle. When it comes to "The Politician," this means it contains a significant degree of sexuality, coarse language, and generally intense themes.

Notably, TV-14 is not TV-MA, which is the next label up. TV-MA shows include "The Walking Dead," "Breaking Bad," and "Succession" — basically, shows that go all-out when it comes to violence, sexuality, harrowing themes, and language. "The Politician" isn't anywhere near as hardcore as those series, but it's not necessarily something a middle-schooler could handle. Bottom line: Use your best judgement when it comes to sharing this show with younger viewers.

"The Politician" calls Netflix home. That platform is definitely the number-one place to watch it, but it's not actually the only option. Google Play offers Season 1 for $14.99 — though notably, you can't get your hands on Season 2. So it goes with Amazon Prime: Season 2 can't be had here, but Season 1 is available for $14.99. Each individual episode can also be purchased for $2.99. If neither of those options work for you, you have one more to explore: Vudu offers Season 1 for — you guessed it — $14.99.