Anna Kendrick's Love Life was a hit for HBO Max straight out of the gate, and the new streamer hasn't wasted any time in securing more of the show. Love Life has been renewed for a second season on the same day that the Season 1 finale released. That said, more Love Life won't mean more of the same, as Kendrick won't be the leading lady.
Love Life will prove to be a true anthology with its second season as it moves on from Anna Kendrick's Darby as the lead character. Season 2 will still be set in New York City, with the focus on the journey of a new character. This new character's journey will explore the aftermath of living a full life knowing a soulmate, then finding out after some years of marriage that the soulmate match isn't a fit after all.
The new lead is described as a "new character," so Love Life fans shouldn't necessarily count on one of the side players from Season 1 stepping into the spotlight. Still, the new episodes will connect to characters introduced in the first season, and Darby will occasionally appear. Maybe letting somebody else step into to spotlight will let Anna Kendrick take that break she missed out on! The actress previously shared why she refused all nudity for the show.
There are story reasons why it makes sense for Love Life not to focus on one person's love life for more than one season. The conclusion of Darby's story in the Season 1 finale won't have to be undone for a second season, and the new episodes will hopefully check in on her without undoing everything or pulling focus from the new lead.
All things considered, the renewal doesn't come as a surprise. Viewer response to Love Life was so strong right out of the gate that HBO Max nixed the original plan to release episodes weekly after the initial premiere with three installments, and the plan was changed to release Episodes 4-6 on June 4 and then the final episodes on June 11.
The show is already one of HBO Max's top performers out of all the streamer's available content, which is saying something considering the library HBO Max made available at launch. That's not to say that HBO Max has had smooth sailing altogether since it launched on May 27, considering the controversy surrounding Gone With the Wind. Still, with Love Life as the first HBO Max original to score a renewal, subscribers can take heart that the streamer already has big plans for the future.
My big question at this point is of who Love Life will cast to replace Anna Kendrick at the center of the new series. I'm guessing that Love Life wouldn't have been such a big hit so early on without Kendrick's name recognition, even if Love Life was HBO Max's first scripted original series. That said, Love Life reportedly isn't HBO Max's most popular show!
If you haven't given Love Life a shot yet and are interested now that it has a guaranteed Season 2, you can check it out on HBO Max now. If you're in the market for some other viewing options, be sure to swing by our 2020 summer premiere schedule.
