Hulu Renews Popular New Drama Series for Season 2: ‘Paradise’ Will Return

Hulu has handed out a renewal to its hit new drama. According to The Hollywood Reporter, political thriller Paradise has been picked up for a second season less than a month after premiering. Created by Dan Fogelman and starring Sterling K. Brown, the drama is “set in a serene community inhabited by some of the world’s most prominent individuals. But this tranquility explodes when a shocking murder occurs, and a high-stakes investigation unfolds.”

The series also stars Julianne Nicholson, Sarah Shahi, Nicole Brydon Bloom, Aliyah Mastin, Percy Daggs IV, and James Marsden. News of the renewal comes just six episodes into the eight-episode season, which will conclude on Mar. 4. While the first three episodes were set to premiere on Jan. 28, the first episode actually dropped early, releasing on Jan. 26 instead. Paradise’s first season will also be airing on ABC starting Monday, Apr. 7 at 10 p.m. ET.

Similarly to his plans with This Is Us, Fogelman has a three-season plan for Paradise, telling THR, “Without giving away too much, each season of the show is a slightly different show, within the same show with the same characters. The pilot reveals something at the end, and then there’s twists and turns in the course of the season. Then, the seventh episode is kind of a standout, standalone episode of the show. As we go into second season, we pivot a little bit, but in a way that I think is very follow-able. But yes, there’s big moves ahead.”

“The goal at the end of the first season… I get frustrated by television shows that titillate and keep you guessing and have twists and turns but then don’t give you the answers at the end of your first break going off the air. I want to provide a complete meal by the end of the episode for the audience that’s invested,” he continued. “Any question that people have after the first couple of episodes should be answered at the end of the eighth episode. Then a new question and journey will start that takes us into the second season.”

Paradise’s renewal is not so surprising. The series debuted to 7 million viewers in its premiere week across Hulu in the U.S. and Disney+ internationally. According to Flix Patrol, as of Feb. 21, the series is No. 3 for TV shows on Hulu, just behind ABC favorites The Rookie and Will Trent. Since the show just got renewed, it’s likely more information surrounding Season 2 won’t come for a while, but with two episodes still left to premiere for Season 1, there’s no telling what will go down. New episodes of Paradise drop on Tuesdays on Hulu.