Meryl Streep Has Joined The Big Little Lies Cast! Plus, More Deets On Season 2

If you breathlessly, obsessively watched Big Little Lies, you're likely in one of two camps: the people who desperately want a second season and those on team "Don't mess with perfection!" who are vehemently opposed. Either way, the passion people feel about this show tells you just how freaking good it is, especially for a seven-episode series that was initially marketed as little more than a soapy prime-time whodunnit. Instead, the stories were complex, the characters layered, and the subject matter — namely physical and emotional abuse, and sexual assault — tackled with sensitivity and brought to life by a stellar, mostly female cast including Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern, Shailene Woodley and Zoë Kravitz (who, incidentally, have been cleaning up at every awards show since the show premiered.)

Since pretty much the first episode, the rumour mill has been churning out speculation about a possible second season, and the buzz only got louder after last spring's finale. So, could a second season really become a reality? It wouldn't be the first time fan fervour prompted TV execs to rethink their initial strategy and turn out a sequel, and guess what? It worked.

In December, HBO officially announced that Big Little Lies will return for a second season, with Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon returning to their roles and their executive producer posts. Other details, including a premiere date, have not been released, although The New York Times — citing an HBO statement — notes that most of the season one cast will return. Director Jean-Marc Vallée will not; instead, the second season will be directed by Andrea Arnold, who has previously worked on Transparent.

But what else can we look forward to? Here, we break down everything we know about Big Little Lies season 2.

Are you sitting down? Meryl Streep has joined the already-epic cast for season 2

That's right, the actor with the most Oscar nominations in history (including a just-announced nod for The Post) will join the cast for season 2. Streep will take on the role of Mary Louise Wright, the mother to Alexander Skarsgård's Perry Wright, who (spoiler!), we all know met his death at the end of the first season. Streep's character will join the ladies in California "concerned for the well-being of her grandchildren following her son Perry's death," HBO said. "Mary Louise arrives in Monterey searching for answers."

According to TVLine, "sources" have confirmed that HBO is pushing to start production in spring 2018

HBO is reportedly "eyeing a spring 2018 production start." Writer David E. Kelley all but gave us a save-the-date for the season 2 premiere when he told TVLine that the team is currently "kicking around ideas and trying to lasso the talent [and] get the band back together." Is it too early to get excited? "It’s just a lot of logistical things. But I’m optimistic because everyone wants to do it," Kelley said. "We feel we still have storytelling to do. No decision has been made yet, but we’re hopeful. Where we left it, I felt like it did open the opportunity for a lot more storytelling."

Author Liane Moriarty says she's working on ideas for a second season

The Australian author also told The Sydney Morning Herald last spring that she'd already started brainstorming ideas. "I have started to think about ways this could continue," said Moriarty. "The producers have asked me to see if I can come up with some ideas. I wouldn't write a new book but perhaps a new story and then we'll see what happens." She also said that continuing to address Bonnie and Celeste's stories would be a priority — and that she wasn't super on board with how the show left out Bonnie's entire backstory of domestic abuse. "My original reaction was, what have they done? How have they left that out?" she said. "But a lot of people have said that they could tell [what], there had been little hints and that you can take that away. It’s implied in her performances and some little lines. I think I might have preferred to have had it in there, but I wouldn’t argue against it either."

Reese and Nicole have reportedly optioned the rights to another one of Moriarty's novels

Harper's Bazaar has reported that the costars, who initially optioned the rights to the Big Little Lies novel, have been doing a little more shopping. They reportedly also optioned Moriarty's book Truly Madly Guilty last year and, while it's not a direct sequel to BLL, who knows what TV magic they have in mind?