Outer Banks Season 2 Is Here—And It’s Turned the Volume Way Up

Outer Banks was a smash hit when it premiered on Netflix in spring 2020. The soapy drama centers on John B. (Chase Stokes), a teenager from North Carolina’s Outer Banks who’s desperate to find a $400 million treasure his father died trying to hunt. He convinces his best friends—Kiara (Madison Bailey), Pope (Jonathan Daviss), and JJ (Rudy Pankow)—to help him, and along the way falls for rich-girl Sarah (Madelyn Cline). Sarah is what the OBX gang calls a Kook, a.k.a. a wealthy person in their town. The opposite of this is a Pogue, a label John B., Kiara, Pope, and JJ wear proudly. The Pogues and Kooks don’t get along—so as you can imagine, John B. and Sarah’s coupling ruffles some feathers.

That’s just one intriguing thing about this series. There’s also the treasure, love triangles, and rising tensions between John B. and Sarah’s family that leads to a beloved sheriff’s death.

All this drama spills over to season two. We pick up right where we left off: Sarah and John B. have fled to the Bahamas—both because he’s been framed for murder and because that’s where they think the treasure is. The first six episodes deal with this: tying up loose ends from season one and finally (finally!) locating the gold. After that, the show pivots to a new, more heightened treasure hunt; it has all the elements you loved about the first season and more.

Below, we talked to Stokes, Cline, Bailey, and Carlacia Grant—who plays a new character, Cleo—about what fans can expect from this next chapter.

On what fans can expect from season two

Chase Stokes: I think the beautiful underlying story of our show is the journey of friendship. During the pandemic, there was so much desire to rekindle relationships with friends, go on an adventure, put down your cell phone, and get out into the world. Now that the world is reopening, I hope the show sparks that level of joy again and forces people to get out of their comfort zones. Say sorry a little more. Make that phone call to somebody you haven’t talked to in a while, or get out and be involved in nature.

It’s also just a fun ride. I love the fact that this show is a little bit of escapism. You’re able to separate yourself from the chaos of the world around us. So hopefully we can capture the hearts of people again and allow them to fall back in love with these lovable, dumb, exciting, ridiculous characters that we’ve created over the past two years.

Madelyn Cline: It’s a heightened version of season one!

Madison Bailey: Look forward to all the relationships that people loved, the friendships that people loved, and all the action. We really raised the bar this season, and I think we’re all very proud of how intense and fun this season is to watch.

Carlacia Grant: Everything just goes to a whole new level: a whole new level of friendship, a whole new level of adventure, and a whole new element of fantasy. Fans better clear their schedules for the day because you can’t just watch one episode. You’re going to be glued to the TV.

On John B. and Sarah’s storyline this season

They’re very much still together, but tensions are high. They’ve fled OBX for the Bahamas after Sarah’s dad framed John B. for the sheriff’s murder. Also, the gold is allegedly in Nassau.

Stokes: With John B. and Sarah, they’re bonded in a way that is very, very truthful. They’ve both gone through so much, and they’ve learned so much about their lives that they didn’t know prior to this whole experience of the first season. Being aware of all of that and having that connection is such a beautiful thing. But as we know, trauma is one part of a bonding experience. At some point you’ve got to face the reality of who this person is. So I think it’s fun in season two to watch them learn about each other and, regardless of their flaws or their positives, to grow in this relationship.

On Cleo, one of the breakout characters of the new season

Sarah and John B. meet Cleo in the Bahamas. At first they don’t know if they can trust her, but she soon proves instrumental in their plans to seize the gold.

Grant: She’s a badass. She likes to have a lot of fun, and she always has something up her sleeve. But when she really trusts someone, then she gives her all. In the beginning of the season, she’s in survival mode. She’s in a situation she really doesn’t want to be in. But then she meets John B. and Sarah, and they seem cool. Then you start to see Cleo really open up to them. Fast-forward in the season, and she has no other choice but to be with them. Our relationship blossoms, and then we make the choice that we’re all going to go on a treasure hunt again.

On Pope and Kiara’s relationship

The first season ended with a romance blossoming between these two.

Bailey: Pope and Kiara are really just figuring out where they stand and trying to figure out exactly what their relationship means. They’re both so young, and I think all of the feelings they’re both going through are very natural. They’re also simultaneously going through so much other stuff, and I think that definitely plays a part in the journey of their relationship.

On John B.’s evolution

John B.’s main objective is still to find that treasure—which may come at a price.

Stokes: John B. is such a doorknob. He is such a spontaneous, act-immediately type of person who doesn’t think about the consequences of his actions more times than not. It’s definitely a flaw in his character, for sure, but it makes him human. It brings life to him, because at 17 years old, under the circumstances that he’s in, you’re going to expect somebody to act irrationally. You’re going to expect somebody like that to make selfish choices.

After one major event this season, there’s a realization for him that he, through his selfishness over the past 13 episodes, is really responsible for the pain—physically and emotionally—of those around him. He has to make sort of a very large ultimatum within himself. It was a really beautiful character shift and a lot of fun to play, watching him start to make the right choices. Instead of being selfish, he starts to be selfless, and he starts to think about the bigger picture and realize some other things.

On Kiara’s journey

Kiara comes from a rich family, so she’s technically a Kook. However, all her friends are Pogues, so her identity is split. We see that more than ever this season as tensions with her parents escalate.

Bailey: Kiara’s pretty angry this season. I think her journey is just being torn in the direction of the Pogues, but we do get to see more of Kiara’s home life this season. You really see where the draw to being a Kook is. The line between being grateful for what you have and then also connecting with yourself and finding people that connect with you [is apparent].

Outer Banks season two is now streaming on Netflix.

Originally Appeared on Glamour