According to Variety, Hulu has officially renewed the acclaimed post-apocalyptic drama Paradise for season three. This announcement, like its season two finale set to premiere March 30, comes just days before both premieres, demonstrating the streaming service’s confidence in the series and its continuing success.
Paradise is created by Dan Fogelman of This Is Us, who is also an executive producer and showrunner, and stars Sterling K. Brown, who will be cast as Xavier Collins, a secret agent navigating a devastated world in the wake of a disaster. While the other recurring cast members include Julianne Nicholson, Sarah Shahi, Nicole Brydon Bloom, Krys Marshall, Enuka Okuma, Aliyah Mastin, Percy Daggs IV, and Charlie Evans, along with guest stars James Marsden, Shailene Woodley, Thomas Doherty, and Jon Beavers.
More than 30 million viewing hours have already been racked up by Season 2, which premiered on February 23. Since the launch of Season 2, Season 1 has jumped an additional 25 million viewing hours (over 55 million in total). The show has also received good reviews for its plot twists and storytelling, receiving four Emmy nominations (including Outstanding Drama Series). Three actors – Brown, Marsden, and Nicholson – received acting nominations, with Brown receiving both a Golden Globe nomination and an NAACP Image Award for Best Actor.
Paradise takes place in a post-apocalyptic world and follows survivors living in a secure, off-the-grid bunker community and the chaos outside as they try to navigate their way through life following the collapse of society due to man-made disasters (in this case, nuclear war). The logline for Season 2 shows that Xavier (Brown) will be looking to reunite with his wife, Teri (Nicholson), while dealing with some major internal tensions amongst the residents inside their bunker in Season 2.
While Hulu has not released information on when Season 3 will premiere or how many episodes will make it up, this renewal fits well with Fogelman’s earlier comments about his intention to produce a three-season arc (with the conclusion of Season 3 being the final chapter for the overall storyline). Additionally, prior comments made by Executive Producer John Hoberg support the position that season 4 would be difficult since the overall arc of the narrative will have reached its conclusion.
Additionally, the renewal reflects how well Paradise is merging drama and genre, while also establishing it as one of Hulu’s best original series.