'Heartstopper' Fans Will Be Shocked to Learn This Latest Series News

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If you've breathlessly buzzed through Netflix's Heartstopper since its late April debut, you're not alone. The touching coming-of-age LGBTQ+ romance has captured the hearts of millions. Now, both new fans and devout readers (it was first a series of novels!) humming about a potential season 2 to come.

Framed by a trio of love stories and gay, lesbian and trans characters struggling against adversity, Heartstopper has managed to quickly garner massive acclaim, despite mostly featuring a cast of fresh British characters that U.S. viewers may be unfamiliar with. The show has deftly earned its "100% Fresh" rating via Rotten Tomatoes all while staying mostly true to the series' material itself, a collection of graphic novels written by Alice Oseman, an author who identifies as aromantic asexual. Alice, who uses she/they pronouns, has long connected with fans online; they've worked to bring awareness and better representation of aromantic individuals, which makes Heartstopper's initial success particularly exciting.

Heartstopper brings viewers along for the ride as an out gay teen Charlie Spring, played by Joe Locke (his first major role), navigates dating while struggling against bullies and discrimination at an all-boys high school in England. After a particularly hard freshman year and a toxic relationship with a closeted classmate, Charlie ends up becoming quick friends with the sporty rugby "king" Nick Nelson — portrayed by Rocketman's Kit Connor — before the pair fall in love. And they're not the only pair of characters navigating the realities of coming out and other common LGBTQ+ hurdles; supporting characters Tara Jones (Corinna Brown) and Darcy Olsson (Kizzy Edgell) as well as trans heroine Elle Argent (Yasmin Finney), all confront underscored themes in season 1 of the show.

While fans can't get enough of the lighthearted nature of this adorable love story, many have also said that Heartstopper unpacks a lot about the experiences of LGBTQ+ youth while eschewing cliches that other films and shows have created in years past.

"It was just a sweet, innocent, coming of age story about friendships and first love. The one so many of us have desperately needed for so long," one Twitter user said. "I love how most of the [series] is centered on acceptance, which is what people of the LGBTQ+ community have been craving so much," another added.

As longtime readers already know, Alice didn't end Heartstopper with just one entry — and there is plenty more to discover about Nick and Charlie's love story in the full series. Netflix aficionados may also be thrilled to hear that Alice also expanded upon Nick and Charlie's world in other novels dedicated to supporting characters. With all this extra material at play, you may be wondering — Are we getting a Heartstopper season 2? If yes, where does the series go from here?

Has Heartstopper been renewed for season 2?

The short answer? Yes!

Deadline announced the exciting news in May, saying that Netflix not only gave a green light for a season 2 but fans can expect a season 3 too. Given how Netflix metrics indicated that season 1 debuted and remained in the streamers' Top 10 for three weeks, it was a no-brainer for the streamer to give the series another go.

Before news broke about season 2, Heartstopper executive producer Patrick Walters gave an interview to outlet Pink News about the series' production right as the show debuted. At the time, he indicated that the showrunners would "love a second season" in the near future.

"I mean we have such amazing partners in Netflix and it really feels like they get the show, and they understand the world we're trying to deliver," Walters said. "Given there are more books in the series, there's more source material to adapt. Alice and I are getting our thinking caps on and starting to think ahead now."

Actors Joe Locke and Kit Connor have also opened up in press interviews about how the show's impact on the LBGTQ+ community has touched them personally, sharing nuggets that suggest that both are open to returning to their mainstay roles in the series.

"I think it's so great that our show is able to be optimistic for a younger queer audience, to show them that they aren't different and they deserve happiness and love the same way that Charlie and Nick find it in each other," Joe told NBC News. "It's so important to not only make this show for queer people … but also make the show to normalize queer happiness, break down barriers, break down stigma and create a society that is so much more accepting."

Kit also gave his thoughts about a second season, telling the Radio Times, "In terms of, I suppose what I'd like to see for Nick, I think just the strengthening Nick and Charlie’s relationship. In season 1, we very much see the young love and the beginnings of their relationship. And I think that it would be lovely, you know — not just to act — also just to see, as well, their relationship just, sort of, get stronger and blossom."

Joe also hinted that storylines in the future will continue to address issues that plague viewers of all ages in the future. "I think it’s quite easy to look ahead at a second season because of Volumes 3 and 4 of the novels," he told Entertainment Weekly. "Charlie develops an eating disorder and his mental health takes a turn for the worse and I think that would be interesting to look into, especially if the show continues to be very much a teen show.”

What will Heartstopper season 2 be about?

Because the show's first season packs in elements of Alice's first and second Heartstopper graphic entry novels, fans of the Netflix show can expect some elements of any future plot to pick up right in about volumes three and four in the series.

The Netflix show's season 1 ends as Nick comes out to his mother and all of his and Charlie's classmates at Truham Grammar School, there's still plenty to explore about how their new relationship will play out now that it's public. Heartstopper's third graphic novel has Nick and Charlie join a school trip to Paris. During this time, the school can't stop speculating about the unlikely couple.

But as readers well know, nothing is as easy as it seems for Nick as he begins a new journey in embracing his bisexuality — and Charlie faces new challenges altogether as the public scrutiny increases. All to say, there are more relationship milestones and challenges to overcome for the show's leading duo.

Heartstopper also delves deeper into the surrounding relationships of Tara and Darcy as well as the fledgling romance between Charlie's best friend Tao (William Gao) and Elle in later novels. There's a great chance that Tara and Darcy's storyline will come into focus in season 2 of Netflix's Heartstopper because the young lesbian romance has a full origin backstory that wasn't revealed in the show's first season. If the graphic novels serve us any further clues about potential plot points, it's clear that viewers will also get to know Mr. Ajayi (Fisayo Akinade), Charlie's champion at Truham, beyond his role as a teacher.

But showrunner Alice doesn't have to stick to the rigidity of following her graphic novels' existing plotlines alone. Fans may be surprised to learn that the author expanded upon the Heartstopper universe with additional novels that focus exclusively on supporting characters that we've been quietly introduced to in the show's first season on Netflix.

A clear-cut fan-favorite among viewers, Charlie's sister Tori Spring (Jenny Walser) gets just a few precious minutes of screentime in season 1 — but Alice has actually written an entire novel about Tori. Published in 2014, Solitaire chronicles Tori's adventures with a fellow classmate as they bust bullies and pranks at their school. Readers get to see Tori branch off into a universe of her own, much more than just the fraction of the character Netflix viewers met. Plus, Solitaire covers crucial facts about Charlie's backstory that were never disclosed in Heartstopper directly. There's even been some chatter that Solitaire could serve as a direct spinoff for the series in the future.

There's also been plenty of discussion about the character of Isaac Henderson, portrayed by Tobie Donovan in Netflix's adaptation of Heartstopper. Eagle-eyed and educated viewers have noted that the character on the show seemingly falls into asexual and aromantic spectrums, which Alice later confirmed herself. There's a chance that Heartstopper could pay more attention to these dynamics in the future given that Alice has plenty of other written material in this space to incorporate into the show — like her 2020 novel Loveless. Having more storylines dedicated to Isaac or additional characters isn't out of the question!

Who would be in the Heartstopper season 2 cast?

Beyond seeing the main duo of Nick and Charlie onscreen once again, you may be wondering if the show would pivot away from any of the other characters viewers have been introduced to in season 1. The good news? It's pretty unlikely as the graphic novels in the series continue to expand upon plots associated with Elle, Tao, Tara and Darcy, even antagonist, Ben (Sebastian Croft).

Since it's near impossible that any of these characters would be forsaken in Heartstopper season 2, keep up with any news by following them on social below:

• Joe Locke (Charlie): Instagram and Twitter.

• Kit Connor (Nick): Instagram and Twitter.

• Yasmin Finney (Elle): Instagram and Twitter.

• William Gao (Tao): Instagram.

• Corinna Brown (Tara): Instagram and Twitter.

• Kizzy Edgell (Darcy): Instagram and Twitter.

• Tobie Donovan (Isaac): Instagram and Twitter.

• Sebastian Croft (Ben): Instagram and Twitter.

• Rhea Norwood (Imogen): Instagram and Twitter.

• Jenny Walser (Tori): Instagram and Twitter.

Who does Olivia Colman play in Heartstopper?

If you have yet to watch the show, you may have heard there's a quite important cameo made by Olivia Colman — and you'd be right! She plays Nick's mother, Sarah Nelson, in the show and has stirred a frenzy online for her raw portrayal in the show so far.

"I was talking to Alice and suggested Olivia Colman to play Nick's mom and it felt like a total fantasy," producer Patrick told Metro. "I thought there was no way she would want to be a part of this or any one famous would want to be a part of this. I was proven wrong!”

The now-iconic blooper making its way around social media was entirely genuine, too. "In their scene when he’s coming out to her in the rehearsal, Olivia was just looking at Kit and his performance was so moving she just burst into tears and forgot their lines. It was a kind of amazing dream,” he added. “In being there with her on those days, she seemed to really respond to Kit and what he was doing in those scenes and to feel like the open communication between a mother and a son of that age, she said that was really lovely and nice to play.”

Now, you may be wondering this: Is Olivia Colman returning to the show for season 2? Unfortunately, we don't have any answers on this just yet. But trust us, the first moment we find out, we'll let you know, because we need more moments between Nick and Sarah ASAP!

How can I read Heartstopper online?

If you're looking to read Oseman's printed novels, you're in luck. Amazon currently has the first graphic novel available for readers and you can continue to read all of the "episodes" within the printed books for free if you know where to look. You can read all 205 episodes that have been published since via the online platform Tapas, where it's been organized into seven different chapters.

If you're still wanting to read Hearstopper in its printed form, Barnes & Noble has most of Alice's graphic novels currently in stock — you'll also find her YA novels like Solitaire and I Was Born for This in stock there.

How can I watch and stream Heartstopper?

If you want to watch the show for the first time (or see it all over again), you can stream Heartstopper on Netflix. In case you don't have an account yet, there are different options the streamer lets you subscribe to that range from $9.99 to $19.99 per month. If you prefer to take the series on the go, you don't have to stick to just watching it on your smart TV or laptop. Netflix's app allows you to view Heartstopper from your phone, tablet or any streaming device you desire. Just make sure you have your login info at the ready and get to watching!

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