When we met the stars of the 2020 adaptation of Sally Rooney’s beloved romance novel Normal People, we weren’t really acquainted with Daisy Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal. Four years later, both actors have become big stars who are leading big Hollywood movies. Edgar-Jones is starring in Twisters this month with Glen Powell, whilst Mescal has just been directed by Ridley Scott for this fall’s Gladiator II. But, would they return for a second season of Normal People? The Marianne actress weighed in.
Back in 2022, Mescal shared his thoughts on the subject. The Irish actor said he was “pro-Season 2, ” before getting honest that there are really “no plans” for another Normal People installment. When Edgar-Jones was asked the question while promoting Twisters to BBC, she said this:
I love those characters. It would be wonderful to explore them again.
So, you may be asking next, “What’s the hold-up?” The actress followed up her answer by sharing her condition for playing Marianne again, and I couldn’t agree more. In her words:
If [Sally Rooney] is up for writing a new story, who knows.
There you have it, and it’s the absolutely correct answer. I would hate to see Normal People go from becoming a mini-series to a multi-season TV show just because a whole bunch of people liked it (including myself). The only way I could see Normal People Season 2 happening was if Sally Rooney found a way to continue the story between Marianne and Connell.
Now, not to say there isn’t something there. I absolutely think there’s some room to continue to tell the romance, again if Rooney wants to. But I imagine this occurring many years after the final moments that made up the Normal People ending might make things a bit more challenging. However, it could also make it so the show could jump forward in time, and we catch up with Marianne and Connell long after Season 1. When asked if she was open to the idea, the Where the Crawdads Sing actress answered by saying this:
Keeping it open. Always open.
When reflecting on Normal People amidst her leading role in Twisters, Daisy Edgar-Jones said that she feels “really lucky” that the “lockdown phenomenon” opened up her and Mescal to so many opportunities.
Paul Mescal is one of her “all time best friends” these days, with the pair recently hanging out with one another at Glastonbury Festival a couple of weeks back. Edgar-Jones looked fondly back at the concert experience, saying she and the Aftersun actor (among other friends in their group) had “the best time.”
Four years later, Normal People certainly remains one of the best Hulu original shows we’ve ever seen! The series tells a complex and compelling story of two high school friends and memorably represents grief, anxiety and depression through the pair’s performances. While there are certainly no plans for Normal People to become anything more than the novel and miniseries it is, it is nice to know both leads would be interested if Rooney is.
You can check out what upcoming book adaptations are set to be released this year here on CinemaBlend! And see Daisy Edgar-Jones in Twisters on July 17 and Paul Mescal in Gladiator II on November 22. To go back and see the show that made them stars, you can stream Normal People with a Hulu subscription.
