Dead to Me has the perfect combination of comedy and drama. Netflix’s four-time Emmy-nominated series was created by Liz Feldman and premiered back in May 2019. It stars Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini as Jen Harding and Judy Hale, respectively, two grieving women from California who form an unexpected and humorous bond during therapy. The dark comedy drama earned rave reviews for its first season, and remained a hit for the streaming giant when season 2 dropped in May 2020.
Netflix renewed Dead to Me for a third and final season in July 2020. The official trailer was released on November 2 and shows what’s unfolding next for Judy and Jen after that wild season 2 cliffhanger. The final season was filmed after Christina was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Below, HollywoodLife has all the updates on season 3 of Dead to Me.
The Show So Far
Dead to Me starts with Jen (Christina) and Judy (Linda) forming a close friendship after their introductions at a grief support group, after both women apparently lost their husbands. But in actuality, Judy’s ex-fiancé, Steve Wood, who is played by James Marsden, is actually alive. Oh, and Judy figures out that it was her who killed Jen’s late husband, Ted, in a fatal hit-and-run. By the end of season 1, Jen discovers Judy’s involvement in Ted’s death, and the two have a bad falling out. Steve, who was in the car when Judy killed Ted, shows up to Jen’s home, and Jen ends up murdering him in a fit of rage. Crazy, right?
That brings us to season 2, where Judy tries to get back in Jen’s good graces to helping her cover up Steve’s murder. The women work hard at hiding the truth, and things get even messier when Steve’s twin brother Ben Wood (also played by James Marsden) shows up. Eventually, Jen’s guilt leads her to confess to Detective Perez (Diana-Maria Riva) about Steve’s murder while trying to protect Judy, but she ends up not getting charged. However, a hiker discovers Steve’s buried body in the woods, opening up Judy’s involvement in the case once again. In the final scene, Jen and Judy are driving around, believing they are free of any law troubles, when a drunken Ben — who had just learned his brother was indeed dead — crashes into them. Ben quickly speeds away, while Jen and Judy awaken to close out season 2.
Will There Be A Season 3 Of ‘Dead To Me’?
Yes, season 3 of Dead to Me is absolutely happening. The show was officially renewed for a third and final season on July 6, 2020, just two months after season 2 was released. “From start to finish, ‘Dead To Me’ is exactly the show I wanted to make,” Liz said in a statement announcing the news. “And it’s been an incredible gift. Telling a story sprung from grief and loss has stretched me as an artist and healed me as a human. I’ll be forever indebted to my partners in crime, my friends for life, Christina and Linda, and our brilliantly talented writers, cast and crew.”
Netflix revealed the official plot for season 3 on November 2. “Jen and Judy return, ready to risk their lives one last time for a friendship that’s above the law. In the aftermath of yet another hit and run, both women receive shocking news. When the FBI takes over Steve’s murder case, Jen is confronted with the dire consequences of taking a life, and Detective Perez struggles to cover up her own complicity. Meanwhile, Judy faces her own existential crisis when her life is threatened by an unexpected force from her past and Ben wrestles with his darkest demons. This season, no one’s future is guaranteed. Will Jen and Judy get away with their lives? And can they save each other?”
Season 3 Premiere Date
Dead To Me season 3 will premiere November 17 on Netflix. This was announced in September 2022 at Netflix’s TUDUM presentation, when the streamer drops major news about its hit shows. Netflix also released the first teaser trailer for season 3 at TUDUM.
Season 3 of the show had actually started filming on May 7, 2021, after most productions were shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Liz shared the big news on Instagram, writing, “And… we’re back! Thrilled and grateful to be able to bring this story home.” However, production on season 3 was paused for five months due to Christina’s multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis, which she announced to the world on Aug. 10. After the news broke, Netflix told The Hollywood Reporter they would be respecting Christina’s wishes of privacy and that show would be put on hold. “We love and support Christina and respect her privacy as she takes the time and space she needs in this moment,” the streamer said.
Season 3 Cast
Christina, Linda and James are all back in their starring roles. Christina had to film the majority of the season after her MS diagnosis. She revealed to The New York Times that she gained 40 pounds from MS, an autoimmune disease which causes the body to eat away at its own nerve tissue. Christina explained that she “had an obligation” to finish the show after taking five months off because of her health. “The powers that be were like, ‘Let’s just stop. We don’t need to finish it. Let’s put a few episodes together [with previously recorded footage].’ I said, ‘No. We’re going to do it, but we’re going to do it on my terms,” the actress said.
The season 3 cast also features Diana-Maria Riva as Detective Perez, Brandon Scott as Detective Nick Prager, Sam McCarthy and Luke Roessler as Jen’s sons, Charlie and Henry, Natalie Morales as Michelle, Judy’s love interest from season 2, Frances Conroy as Eileen, Ben and Steve’s mother, Max Jenkins as Christopher Doyle, Jen’s real estate business partner, and Valerie Mahaffey as Jen’s mother-in-law, Lorna Harding. Garret Dillahaunt joins the cast as Agent Glenn Moranis.
Season 3 Trailer
Jen and Judy have been through a lot. And they survived because they had each other — I mean, have each other…
Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini star in the third and final season of Dead To Me. Premiering November 17. pic.twitter.com/zIxDzzhF0D
— Netflix (@netflix) November 2, 2022
Netflix released the official season 3 trailer on November 2. Jen is in the hospital with a neck brace after the car accident with Ben. Jen and Judy are being investigated by the police now that Steve’s body has been found. “It’s not too late. There is always a way out,” Jen tells Judy, as they try to hide their secrets at any cost.
‘Dead To Me’ Cast & Crew Reaction
Since the season 3 renewal news, some of the crew and cast members have spoken about what’s to come for the last hurrah. For starters, Liz previously explained to Deadline her reasoning for ending the show after three seasons. “I always knew from the inception of the show that I didn’t want it to be a long long-running show,” she said. “Then there was a certain point when we were in production on Season 2 when the end of the show came to me, pretty profoundly, so I realized, ‘I know the story that I have to tell’ and Season 3 feels like the right time to do that. It’s just something that came to me organically, and I tend to try to follow the gut feelings I have.”
Now as far as the season 3 storyline goes, James gave fans a tidbit on that in a TV Guide interview. He said of his character, Ben, “Not only is he maybe going to find out that Jen was responsible for his brother’s death, he’s also guilty of a hit-and-run. And they were the victims of the hit-and-run. And his brother was guilty of a hit-and-run in the first season.”
While season 3 is it for Dead to Me, Liz has more work ahead of her at Netflix. When the news broke of the show’s renewal, it was also confirmed that Liz had inked a multi-year pact with Netflix, in which she’ll “develop new original series and other projects” at the streamer, per Deadline. “I am beyond grateful to Netflix for supporting Dead To Me from day one, and I’m thrilled to continue our collaboration,” Liz said about the news.