The Morning Show Season 3 - What We Know So Far

"The Morning Show" wrapped up its second season on November 18. The penultimate episode of Season 2, as well as the finale, saw the death of a major character, another character contract COVID-19, and the titular entertainment program once again at a crossroads as the network faces down a pandemic. Season 2 of the Apple TV+ drama series starring Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, Billy Crudup, and Mark Duplass leaves more than enough unanswered questions to justify greenlighting Season 3.

It was a long road to get "The Morning Show" Season 2 live on the streaming platform. Production on the series shut down in 2020 amidst the COVID-19 outbreak. Witherspoon told The Hollywood Reporter, "The first few weeks were so frightening, and really, nobody was talking about anything work-related." The pandemic, arguably the biggest news story of the year, meant retooling the season to include the months leading up to COVID-19 hitting the U.S., as well as the start of the initial wave that blindsided the nation.

Despite the setback, showrunner Kerry Ehrin told THR that infusing the pandemic into the characters' storylines was relatively seamless. "The first season was very much about turning over the rock and seeing all the bugs underneath at this corporation. The second season was about, now that the bugs are all out in the light, what do we do? How do we change things? And it fit in nicely with this idea of: How did we as a country sort of miss COVID coming?" So, will there be a Season 3 of "The Morning Show," and where do the characters go from here?

"The Morning Show" has not been renewed for Season 3. In November 2017, Deadline reported that Apple TV+ had given the show a two-season straight to series order, throwing its weight behind the prestige drama. Following the release of Season 1, "The Morning Show" garnered eight Primetime Emmy Awards nominations in 2020. Cast members Jennifer Aniston, Billy Crudup, Steve Carell, and Mark Duplass all took home top prizes for their performances. "The Morning Show" has a 64% approval rating among critics on Rotten Tomatoes and an 82% average audience score.

If Apple greenlights Season 3, production likely won't begin until at least 2022. Seasons 1 and 2 premiered in the fall, so a third season could follow in this pattern. For now, it sounds like everyone involved needs time to decompress. "I think right now, I just finished a season that has taken two years. I am just taking a break! I do have a development deal [at Apple] and I am working on some other projects that I'm excited about. And, that being said, I love the show and I dearly love the cast of the show and I hope it continues," showrunner Kerry Ehrin told The Hollywood Reporter.

Fans will have to keep their fingers crossed that they won't have to wait too long to witness the future exploits of UAB's dysfunctional family.

With no renewal in place for "The Morning Show," it's unclear who will return for Season 3. In a November interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Billy Crudup, Jennifer Aniston, and Reese Witherspoon discussed their futures and those of their characters on the show. At the end of Season 2, Aniston's Alex Levy is stricken with COVID-19. The actress cast some doubt as to whether she'll return for a Season 3, telling THR "it's so hard to even imagine it right now." 

Witherspoon, who plays "The Morning Show" co-host Bradley Jackson, appears to be more locked in. She told the outlet there is talk of Season 3 and they are "definitely planning" another outing. Crudup also appears to be up for reprising his role as Cory Ellison, CEO of the fictional UAB network.

In December 2020, Variety announced Julianna Margulies joined the Season 2 cast, playing Bradley's love interest and news anchor Laura Peterson. Although Laura leaves New York City and heads to Montana to wait out the pandemic, Cory's heartfelt declaration of love for Bradley in the season finale sets up an intriguing love triangle. Margulies told THR she'd like to return to explore Laura and Bradley's relationship and how it changes Bradley.

It's unclear what "The Morning Show" has in store for supporting cast members Mark Duplass, Greta Lee, Karen Pittman, Tom Irwin, Janina Gavankar, Nestor Carbonell, and Desean Terry.  The Season 2 finale doesn't give anyone a tidy ending, and Ehrin purposely leaves the characters in a state of flux."You can't write every year as a possible series finale and have them have any value after a certain point. We wanted to write about the time, those three months, and the characters in that time and how they all wound up," she told The Hollywood Reporter.

The Season 2 finale of "The Morning Show" leaves many central characters in a different headspace than where they start and facing major challenges ahead. Cory (Billy Crudup) suffers a huge professional setback with the failed launch of the UAB+ streaming network. He also shows a vulnerable side by revealing his feelings for Bradley (Reese Witherspoon), who doesn't appear to be able to process his feelings, much less reciprocate them. Witherspoon wants to see Bradley stop being "hard on herself" and taking steps forward regarding "a pretty complicated past that she still hasn't really reconciled," the actress told The Hollywood Reporter.

After a season of unpacking her true place within the Mitch Kessler UAB scandal, Alex (Jennifer Aniston) contracts COVID-19 and, with the help of producer Chip Black (Mark Duplass), films a solo at-home special that sees her crack open that shiny "Morning Show" veneer. Her "Network"-esque on-air meltdown shows a woman who is mad as hell and won't take it anymore. 

"A part of the character of Alex that I always imagined is that she had a public self and she had a private self, and they were very much apart. Her whole arc is about getting those two pieces together to create a whole that is authentic," Ehrin told The Hollywood Reporter. As for Aniston, she would like to see Alex get a break from all the angst with "a lot of love and fun and dancing and playing." It seems the actor-producer may miss her carefree days playing Rachel Green on "Friends" whose toughest quandary is whether or not she and Ross were, indeed, on a break.