‘Fuller House’ Season 2 Preview: Creator Jeff Franklin on DJ’s love ‘Pentagon,’ Stephanie’s Singing Career, and Becky’s Baby Fever
Hola Tannerinos! Fuller House, Netflix’s most popular show, returns Friday, Dec. 9 after an excruciating nine-month wait. From dating a San Francisco Giant (hello, Hunter Pence!) to Mexican wrestling (Lucha Kaboom) to planning a 13th birthday party that goes hilariously wrong, DJ, Stephanie, and Kimmy have had their fair-share of hijinks… and there’s much more to come!
Yahoo TV spoke with Full House/Fuller House creator Jeff Franklin to get a sneak peek at what audiences can expect from America’s favorite TV family in Season 2. With holiday-themed episodes, a surprising new romance for Stephanie, and a special guest appearance by New Kids on the Block, anything is possible when it comes to the Tanner-Gibbler-Katsopolis-Gladstone household.
DJ’s love life was a big focal point last season. Is the Steve/Matt/DJ love triangle still in play?
Jeff Franklin: Absolutely. The triangle is now a pentagon. While DJ was having her summer of introspection to decide what to do, the other guys got girlfriends, so it’s even more complicated.
Juicy! Will Stephanie have any more luck in the romance department this season?
She does have a new boyfriend in Season 2, and that is going to be Kimmy’s brother, Jimmy [played by Switched at Birth star Adam Hagenbuch]. All sorts of complications will come with that relationship, which will be a lot of fun for people.
Stephanie was trying to figure out her life and music career during Season 1. Where do we find her in Season 2?
Instead of concentrating on being a DJ, she is pursuing her singing career. One thing we learned from Season 1 was just how great a vocalist Jodie [Sweetin] is, so we’re using that. In fact, on December 9th, she is releasing on iTunes an original song that she does on the show. We’re all very excited for her. She’s really, really good.
Is Stephanie’s new singing career something that Jodie brought to the creative team, or did that plot development just happen naturally?
I knew she could sing, but she was so shy about it initially. She wasn’t pushing her talent at all, but I asked her to record something for me… and it was just beautiful. I really pushed her to sing, and she just gets better and better. I’m really happy with this direction for her character.
DJ, Stephanie, and Kimmy’s new “she-wolf pack” was a big highlight of the first season. Can you tease any of the new hijinks they’ll be getting into?
I can tell you that this will really be a fun season. At one point, they turn into wedding crashers, and at another they are visited by their favorite band of all time, New Kids on the Block. There are plenty of opportunities for the three of them to have fun together.
I feel like the world has been waiting for a Fuller House/New Kids on the Block crossover.
All of us know each other so well, 25 or 30 years now, so of course I’ve known about Candace [Cameron Bure]’s and Andrea [Barber]’s favorite band. I knew it would be a dream-come-true for the girls to have NKOTB on the show. It’s something I’ve been pursuing for a while, and it finally came together.
A key theme of Full House was the sisterhood between Tanner girls. You now have an interesting chance to explore the nature of brotherhood with the Fuller boys. Are there any storylines with the brothers you’re looking forward to sharing this season?
There’s a crisis with the family dog that brings Jackson and Max together. There’s a story about Jackson’s lack of self-confidence and his feeling like he’s not really special in any particular way. His little brother plays a big part in helping him through that.
They also have an opportunity to unite. For the first time, we meet Joey’s family this season. That Joey’s kids are troublemakers is no surprise, and having to deal with them also brings Jackson and Max together.
Speaking of Joey, can you give us an update on the extended Tanner-Katsopolis–Gladstone family? Does Becky still have baby fever?
Becky does have baby fever, and that’s a big part of their storyline this season. We wrapped the storyline for Season 2 around the holidays: there’s a Halloween show, a Thanksgiving show, a Christmas show, a New Year’s show. Those celebrations provide lots of opportunities for the extended family to get together. You’ll have to see how it plays out.
Bob Saget and John Stamos shared set pictures from the Thanksgiving episode on their social media. Can you talk about the atmosphere on a typical day on one of those shoots?
There are so many bodies on the stage because the cast just keeps growing and growing. I think more than 13 people are included in the cast now. The numbers area lot to manage, but we still get all the work done and have fun at the same time.
Having the extended cast present for the holiday episodes is challenging but certainly worthwhile. When we have the cast of Full House and Fuller House reunited, there’s nothing else like it on TV. There’s no series that spans 30 years like we do. The love that everyone has for each other in and out of character is so obvious. We really treasure these moments that we have together.
Anything else we can look forward to in Season 2 of Fuller House?
Many characters from the past make an appearance this season, including the return of Gia and Girl Talk. We also did a special high school reunion episode in which DJ gets to be reunited with Nelson and Viper, her two boyfriends after she broke up with Steve. Plus, Cathy Santoni is back! Lots of fun stuff.
Season 1 of Fuller House is streaming now on Netflix. Season 2 hits Dec. 9.
