Warning: spoilers for The Summer I Turned Pretty season 2 ahead.
We've finally got our first look pictures at The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3, and we cannot wait for another instalment of love triangle drama. Sadly, it has been confirmed that season 3 will be the final series, but that's all the more reason to soak up every second. And we don't have long to wait – the season is due to drop this summer.
At the end of season 2, we saw protagonist Belly (Lola Tung) finally make a choice between brothers Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno) and Conrad (Christopher Briney). She chose Jeremiah, and we know there's going to be a two-year time jump and, according to The Summer I Turned Pretty author Jenny Han, some “surprises”. But we also know that she will make an ultimate decision this season, after experiencing a conflicted heart once again.
"There are so many amazing scenes for Belly and Jeremiah this season, so many," Jenny Han has told Entertainment Weekly. But will there be a chance for Belly and Conrad? Only time will tell.
We also wonder how closely the series will stick to the Han's third novel, which it will be based on.
"I know Jenny is really just strong on staying as true to the books as possible and hitting the main points," Casalegno, who plays Jeremiah, has told People. Meanwhile, Tung added, "There's so many different ways you could go about it. There's a blueprint of a book, which we've been lucky to have for two seasons now, just such a solid blueprint for us, and to have Jenny on set with us has been incredible."
When did The Summer I Turned Pretty first come out?
The coming-of-age novel The Summer I Turned Pretty was first published in 2009. A few years later, in 2023, it was announced that it had been optioned for television. But it wasn't until February 2021 that Amazon gave the project a series order, officially giving the green light on the TV series's development.
“The Summer I Turned Pretty is many years in the making, and I’m so excited to tell Belly’s story," author Jenny Han told Deadline in 2021 when the show was first announced. “For the longtime book fans, I think it will have been worth the wait. For those newly discovering the Summer series, I hope you fall in love with these characters and this place that is so dear to my heart.”
Jenny Han's most recent trilogy, the To All the Boys series — consisting of the three YA novels To All The Boys I've Loved Before, P.S. I Still Love You, and Always and Forever, Lara Jean — was adapted by Netflix in 2018, with all three books getting an on-screen companion. (XO, Kitty, a TATB spin-off series that focuses on Lara Jean Covey's younger sister Kitty, debuted on Netflix in May. More on that here!)
The Summer I Turned Pretty season 2 premiered in summer 2023. The sophomore chapter of Belly Conklin's story ran weekly until its season finale on Friday, August 18, 2023. The series was renewed for a third season before the second season's end — below, we've gathered everything we know so far about the next addition to the Jenny Han on-screen universe, including The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 release date, new and returning cast members, plot details, trailer, and first look photos.
When was The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 announced?
In an Instagram post on August 3, 2023, Prime Video announced the renewal of The Summer I Turned Pretty, with the caption: “For everyone living for the hope of a season three.” Prime Video also included a note that The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 “was greenlit ahead of the strikes, and production will not begin until after negotiations are resolved.” Nonetheless, the comments were immediately flooded with rejoicing fans. The announcement video was set to Taylor Swift's folklore track “August,” with on-screen text that read “we will always have summer” — a nod to the final book title in the novel trilogy — and “see you in Cousins Beach for season 3.” We're not screaming, you're screaming!
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Is there a trailer for The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3?
Not yet. What we do know is that it'll most likely get another brand-new Taylor Swift song to act as its soundtrack.
ICYMI: TSITP is a proud Swiftie show, with the majority of the cast being vocal about their love for T-Swift. While season 1 debuted “This Love (Taylor's Version)", the full-length trailer for season two served as the premiere for Taylor Swift’s “Back to December (Taylor's Version)”, ahead of the July 2023 re-release of Speak Now. Reminisce with us below by watching the full trailers for The Summer I Turned Pretty seasons 1 and 2 below:
When will The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 be released?
It has been confirmed that the final eleven-episode season will launch on Prime Video in July. A summer treat for us all.
What will The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 be about?
The Summer I Turned Pretty book trilogy follows the coming-of-age of 16-year-old Isabel “Belly” Conklin as she spends summers in the fictional beach town of Cousins Beach with her mother, Laurel, older brother Steven, and her mother's childhood best friend Susannah and her sons Conrad and Jeremiah — two brothers who Belly gets wrapped up in a love triangle with.
According to Deadline, the official synopsis for The Summer I Turned Pretty series reads as follows: “[TSITP] is a multigenerational drama that hinges on a love triangle between one girl and two brothers, the ever-evolving relationship between mothers and their children, and the enduring power of strong female friendship. It is a coming-of-age story about first love, first heartbreak, and the magic of that one perfect summer.”
It's possible that TSITP season 3 could follow the chronology of Han's novels. The next book in the trilogy, titled We’ll Always Have Summer, was published in 2011. Here's the official synopsis of We'll Always Have Summer — do with this information what you will! *insert eye emojis*
“Belly has only ever been in love with two boys, both with the last name Fisher. And after being with Jeremiah for the last two years, she’s almost positive he is her soul mate. Almost. While Conrad has not gotten over the mistake of letting Belly go, Jeremiah has always known that Belly is the girl for him. So when Belly and Jeremiah decide to make things forever, Conrad realizes that it’s now or never—tell Belly he loves her, or lose her for good. Belly will have to confront her feelings for Jeremiah and Conrad and face the inevitable: She will have to break one of their hearts.”
There's always potential for major plot points to make it into the show, but it has not yet been confirmed whether TSITP season 3 will follow the book order in terms of plot. However, eagle-eyed fans of the books noticed an easter egg in the season 2 finale that seems like the third season could very well remain faithful to the novels.
During the flashback of Belly's last conversation with Susannah, Belly arrives as the Fisher boys' mom is writing letters in bed. Belly's mom Laurel moves the letters in a jumble, and Susannah tries to haphazardly put them into envelopes to get them out of the way. In the third novel, this mix-up leads to Susannah's letter to Conrad being mistakenly given to Jeremiah, which is a crucial plot point and an extremely pivotal moment for the endgame of the Belly-Conrad-Jeremiah love triangle. “One thing about jenny han…she’ll remind you how this story really ends,” reacted one fan on Twitter. "She showed us susannah writing the letters and dropping them which most likely lead to the mix up!”
Still, author Jenny Han wants fans to keep an open mind — TSITP is a TV adaptation, after all. "I really had to weigh what the fans are expecting with where the show is going creatively and find that balance,” Han told Variety in June 2022. “My priority has always been that I want fans of the book to feel really satisfied by the story we’re telling, but also for them to know that this is an adaptation in a new medium, so it’s not going to be exactly the same. I think those are sort of the two things that are always in my head… I don’t want to spoil too much but the books have been out for a while. You never know what could happen with the show. I was open minded going into it. I was considering a lot of different possibilities.”
Who is in the cast of The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3?
Industry newcomer Lola Tung plays The Summer I Turned Pretty's lead role of 16-year-old Belly Conklin, who is… awkwardly adjusting to exiting her awkward stage. Completing the love triangle the show centres on are actors Christopher Briney and Gavin Casalegno, portraying the Fisher brothers Conrad and Jeremiah, respectively.
Manifest star Sean Kaufman is Steven, Belly's older brother; Jackie Chung plays Belly's mother Laurel; and Rachel Blanchard portrayed the late Susannah Fisher, Conrad and Jeremiah's mother, the “glue” that holds both families together. It's possible that Blanchard could return as Susannah in flashbacks, similar to how she did in the final episode of season 2.
Other cast members expected to return are Alfredo Narciso as Cleveland Castillo, Colin Ferguson as John Conklin, Tom Everett Scott as Adam Fisher, David Iacono as Cam, and Rain Spencer as Taylor. New faces that joined for season 2, like Kyra Sedgwick as Aunt Julia and Elsie Fisher as Skye, could also return.
Where will I be able to watch The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3?
You'll be able to stream The Summer I Turned Pretty season 3 on Prime Video, just like seasons 1 and 2.
“Adapting my novel, The Summer I Turned Pretty, into a television series at Prime Video has been an incredible experience, and I’m so thrilled to now expand my relationship with them,” Han said ahead of season 1's release, per Deadline. “I’ve been telling stories for as long as I can remember, first on the page, then onscreen, and now I’m delighted to start this new chapter: creating and championing stories about coming of age at every age for Prime Video’s global audience.”
This article was originally published by Teen Vogue.
