After nearly two years, Netflix’s beloved queer teen dramedy Heartstopper is coming back for season three, and we finally have more details ahead of its October premiere.
The streamer released six new Heartstopper photos from the new season on July 8, allowing fans to piece together six hidden letters that could be found across the images, which were each posted to different Netflix accounts. Enterprising fans then entered the resulting six-letter password into a link to unlock the new info. As one X user noted, Jigsaw himself would be proud!
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The first-look photos include snapshots of the Heartstopper gang posing with a giraffe at what appears to be a zoo, Charlie and his pal Isaac reading Maia Kobabe’s comic book memoir Gender Queer, and several of the show’s main couples stealing sweet moments alone.
Speaking to Netflix’s official news site, Tudum, Heartstopper creator and author Alice Oseman shared that, in season three, “We are doing something that will feel very different, and people will be surprised, and I can’t wait.”
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Although Heartstopper will still feature plenty of the baby gay antics and adorable multicolor falling cartoon leaves it’s known for, Oseman teased that the show will embrace a newfound maturity as its characters experience new milestones.
“While Heartstopper will always celebrate the joyful and point towards hope, I’m really excited that we are allowing the tone of the show to mature alongside our beloved characters growing up,” they said. “Mental health, sex, university ambitions, and more: Nick, Charlie, and the Heartstopper teens are getting older, learning more about themselves and each other, and experiencing new desires, new fears, and new joys as they approach adulthood.”
Fans of Oseman’s original Heartstopper webcomic can also look forward to season three adding a fan-favorite character: Oliver, who was introduced in the comic as Charlie’s younger brother. In the show, Oliver is a younger cousin played by actor Jensen Clayden. Oseman hinted that Oliver will make a “small but festive appearance,” so keep your eyes peeled for his debut!
As if that weren’t enough, season three will also feature two major new guest stars: Hayley Atwell as Nick’s aunt Diane and Bridgerton’s Jonathan Bailey as Jack Maddox, Charlie’s celebrity crush. Can it be autumn already?
Heartstopper season three premieres on Thursday, October 3.
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