Dead to Me – Picture: Netflix / CBS Television Studios
Dead to Me season 3 is still moving forward at Netflix despite a couple of delays in production. Filming was paused in August 2021 after Christina Applegate’s diagnosis but did pick back up again. Here’s an updated what we know so far about Dead to Me season 3.
Please note: this preview was first published in May 2020 and has been updated regularly to reflect new developments. It was last updated in December 2021.
For those out of the loop, Dead to Me is a Netflix Original black-comedy series created by Liz Feldman (who signed an overall deal with Netflix off the back of season 2 of Dead to Me). The series has fast become one of the most-watched comedy series on Netflix, having amassed an audience of over 30 million worldwide for the first season.
The soul of the series belongs to the chemistry between Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini. On-screen together they have been electric, making for some truly hilarious comedy, and heart-wrenching drama.
Has Netflix renewed Dead to Me for the third season?
Official Netflix Renewal Status: Renewed (Last Updated: 06/07/2020)
Just two months after Dead to Me season 2 premiered, Netflix announced that the series would return for a third and final outing at Netflix.
There should be no surprise that Dead to Me has been renewed again, the series featured heavily in the most popular tv series lists on Netflix. In particular, it sat at the top of the US charts the day of release.
On the renewal, Christina Applegate took to social media to share her thoughts on the final season announcement saying “I will miss these ladies. But we felt this was the best way to tie up the story of these women. Thank you to all the fans. We will be getting back to work when it is safe to do so.”
Dead to Me – Picture: Netflix
Fans thinking the show faced the dreaded Netflix cancelation curse should know the show was always intended to be wrapped up early and not go on for seasons and seasons. Liz Feldman in an interview said she always envisioned that it wouldn’t be “a long long-running show”.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Feldman expanded saying:
“I always had the sense that I wanted this show to be a relatively short-running one. I understand the landscape at Netflix. It’s very rare for them to have a show that goes five, six or seven seasons. It can happen, but it’s obviously the exception. Halfway through shooting season two, an idea came to me that felt very true to the show — and I realized that it could be a really great way to end it.”
The good news is that Liz Feldman will be sticking with Netflix once Dead to Me has concluded. She signed an overall deal which means any new projects the creator has will come to Netflix. No other new projects have yet to be announced, however.
Dead to Me season 3 production status & potential release window
Current production status: Filming paused “temporarily” (last updated: August 2021)
Writing commenced soon after its renewal and it then took several months until the scripts were handed to Netflix for approval.
On September 18th, 2020 Liz Feldman took to Twitter to share that she pitched the third season “to my partners” and it had been approved.
Just pitched all of @deadtome Season 3 to my partners at @Netflix and they’re excited and I’m excited and I CAN’T BELIEVE THEY’RE GONNA LET ME TELL THIS STORY
— Liz Feldman (@thelizfeldman) September 18, 2020
In October 2020, we learned that CBS Studios was eyeing to begin filming season 3 in January 2021. It had been stated in previous interviews that production wouldn’t start until December 2020 at the earliest.
In January 2021 it was reported by ProductionWeekly that filming was scheduled to start later that month. But once again thanks to the uncertainty of the global pandemic, the dates were pushed back further.
Filming did get underway from May 10th, 2021, and was expected to conclude on August 2nd, 2021. Lead actress Christina Applegate shared a picture of one of the Dead to Me chairs onset to all but confirm that filming was underway.
Dead to Me Season 3 Set – Picture: 1capplegate / Instagram
However, in August 2021, Christina Applegate revealed that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis several months prior. According to multiple sources, production “paused temporarily” around that time and since then, we hadn’t heard of any news regarding the show picking back up.
Deadline reported in December 2021 that filming had picked back up in 2021 but had been canceled for 2021 given several cases of COVID-19. According to Deadline, there are still three weeks of shooting remaining which will occur at some point in 2022.
What to expect from Dead to Me season 3
*Dead to Me Season 2 Spoiler Warning*
The Crash Aftermath
Ben, presumedly on his way to identify the body of his dead brother Steve, hit the car that Jen and Judy were in at the intersection. The struggling alcoholic had been drinking whiskey and ran through a stop sign.
It’s unclear if Ben even realized it was Jen and Judy he hit, and whether or not the pair got a glimpse of Ben before he drove away.
This will weigh heavily on Ben, who’s likely to turn to another bottle, especially if he thought he killed whoever was in the car, not to mention being on the way to identify his dead brother’s body.
Jen and Judy are conscious, but it’s unclear what injuries the pair may have sustained. If the pair learn that Ben was the one driving, we can expect an awkward confrontation between them.
Ben crashed his car into Jen and Judy – Copyright. Dead to Me
Charlie finds Judy’s Letter
After searching Judy’s room for some weed, Charlie finds the letter that his mother, Jen, had written for Judy.
It’s not revealed if Charlie actually read the letter, but if he has, then he will have learned of Judy’s involvement in his father’s hit-and-run death. Not to mention, his mother’s guilt in killing Steve.
With such evidence, it would make him innocent as he is still a suspect in Steve’s disappearance.
Charlie has shown to be extremely rebellious, so he could either end up blackmailing Judy and Jen, or he’ll make their life hell because of the death of his father.
Charlie found Judy’s letter from his mother – Copyright. Dead to Me
Will Jen be caught?
Jen was prepared to face the consequences of Steve’s murder and had confessed to Detective Perez. But after the pair were unable to find the body, and had a heart-to-heart, Perez let her go free.
Nick, who’s been hot on the case, was given a bag of evidence by Judy to incriminate Steve and Steve’s father. She was hoping that Nick could use the evidence to protect Jen, but upon realizing that Jen hadn’t formally confessed yet, she had to backtrack.
Charlie has the letter, Jen confessed to Perez, and the body of Steve has been found, there many threads of the web that could lead all the way back to Jen being arrested.
Perez was hot on the case until Jen confessed – Copyright. Dead to Me
Who will be returning for season 3 of Dead to Me?
We can expect to see the following cast members return to reprise their roles in the third season of Dead to Me:
| Role | Cast Member | Where Have I Seen/Heard Them Before? |
|---|---|---|
| Jen Harding | Christina Applegate | The Sweetest Thing, Bad Moms, Married with Children |
| Judy Hale | Linda Cardellini | Scooby-Doo, Brokeback Mountain, Avengers: Age of Ultron |
| Charlie Harding | Sam McCarthy | All These Small Moments, Condor, The Blacklist |
| Henry Harding | Luke Roessler | It Chapter Two, Riverdale, Descendants 3 |
| Steve/Ben Wood | James Marsden | X-Men, Hairspray, Enchanted |
| Christopher Doyle | Max Jenkins | The Mysteries of Laura, Crown Prince, Plus One |
| Detective Ana Perez | Diana Maria Riva | What Women Want, 17 Again, The Good Guys |
| Nick Prager | Brandon Scott | This Is Us, 13 Reasons Why, Grey’s Anatomy |
As the series is still in early production, we’ve yet to hear of any additional cast announcements but we will leave you with an excellent table read via the cast produced for ET Online.
Before we leave you, we’d recommend heading to the Netflix Queue website (which is an official Netflix website interviewing key talent in their productions) where they interviewed Liz Feldman who spilled the beans on some of the major spoilers in season two. It doesn’t go into much details regarding season 3, but it does reveal the following:
“but she is happy to confirm that the series will continue to navigate the complexities of friendship and grief. It will also remain committed to normalizing female anger.”
Are you looking forward to the third season of Dead to Me on Netflix? Let us know in the comments below!