Sadie Stanley, Griffin Gluck, and newcomer Eloise Payet set to lead ensemble cast for season two.
Freeform’s CRUEL SUMMER returns as an anthology with a fresh mystery and cast when its highly-anticipated second season premieres later this year. Executive produced by Emmy® Award nominee Jessica Biel and Michelle Purple (The Sinner, Candy) through Iron Ocean Productions and from studio eOne, the first season of CRUEL SUMMER was a critical and ratings smash, making it Freeform’s most-watched series in network history.
Set in an idyllic waterfront town in the Pacific Northwest, the next chapter of CRUEL SUMMER follows the rise and fall of an intense teenage friendship. Approaching the story from three different timelines surrounding Y2K, the season twists and turns as it tracks the early friendship between Megan, Isabella and Megan’s best friend Luke, the love triangle that blossomed, and the mystery that would impact all of their lives going forward.
Sadie Stanley (The Goldbergs) will star as Megan Landry, a computer coder and honor student from a blue-collar family. Once Megan meets Isabella, she begins to live in the moment and embrace her true self. When events take a tragic turn, her long-held dreams are dashed, and she is left wondering who she can trust.
Eloise Payet portrays the alluring and enigmatic Isabella, the daughter of foreign diplomats, who is spending a year as an exchange student with the Landry family. She quickly shakes up life in this small town, but her charm can’t hide the truth about her past, or the real reason she came to live with the Landrys forever.
Griffin Gluck (Locke & Key) plays Luke Chambers, Megan’s lifelong best friend from a prominent family. Over time, Luke finds himself at a crossroads as he tries to establish his own place in the world, separate from the expectations of his powerful father.
KaDee Strickland (Private Practice) stars as Debbie, Megan’s hardworking single mom who thinks hosting Isabella will open Megan’s eyes to a bigger world than their small town. Lisa Yamada (Little Fires Everywhere) is Parker, a popular musician who becomes more cynical as the world takes a dark turn around her. Sean Blakemore (Greenleaf) will play Sheriff Myer, an old-fashioned law-and-order type, under pressure to solve the first major crime in Chatham. Paul Adelstein (True Story) will recur as Steve Chambers, Luke’s high-profile dad, whose influence in town is far-reaching.
Freeform also shared a little clue on the official CRUEL SUMMER Instagram account. There's a video featuring an away message (throwback!), and then an error message on the screen reads, "199920002001," which is likely the three years in which the new season will take place, 1999, 2000, and 2001. That sure makes the away message make a lot more sense.
CRUEL SUMMER comes from studio eOne and was created by Bert V. Royal. Elle Triedman serves as showrunner. Executive producers include Triedman, Bill Purple, Tia Napolitano, and Iron Ocean Productions’ Jessica Biel and Michelle Purple. The series is distributed internationally by eOne.
About Freeform
Freeform’s distinct brand of coming-of-age programming helps to position it as the No. 1 primetime cable network in entertainment among Adults, Women and Men 18-34 in the 2021/2022 TV season to date. Connecting to audiences with its bold original programming and immersive social engagement, Freeform channels the force and momentum of its young adult audience in its quest for progress with authentic, groundbreaking original series such as Emmy®-nominated grown-ish, Good Trouble, Motherland: Fort Salem, Single Drunk Female, and Cruel Summer, which was the No. 1 new cable drama of 2021 among Women 18-34. Last year, Freeform aired four of the Top 15 scripted cable original series among Women 18-34 — more than any other network, with grown-ish ranking as cable’s No. 1 live-action comedy series of the year in the demo.
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