We Were Liars Season 2: E Lockhart Finally Reveals the Book Behind It
Brace for bigger lies: We Were Liars is gearing up for an even twistier return, with E. Lockhart hinting in a Deadline chat at shockers that will upend what fans think they know.
If you were still thinking about that ghostly finale, same. And now E. Lockhart just laid out where We Were Liars is headed next, and it sounds like Season 2 is not just a straight lift from the books.
So, what is Season 2 actually adapting?
Per Lockhart, the plan is to use her prequel novel Family of Liars as the spine of the new season, but showrunners Julie Plec and Carina Adly MacKenzie are not playing it safe. They are layering in new storylines and twists alongside the book material, and Lockhart made it clear that familiar characters will get fresh arcs on top of the Family of Liars stuff.
'They have lots of ideas up their sleeves, so that people who know Family of Liars will get to see everything that they want to see, but they will also get to be surprised. I think it's going to be really fun.'
Who is back for Season 2
- Emily Alyn Lind returns as Cadence.
- Joseph Zada is back as Johnny.
- Candice King is expected to reprise Bess Sinclair.
- Caitlin FitzGerald is expected to return as Penny Sinclair.
- Deadline says all three Sinclair sisters and the aunts from Season 1 are set to return.
Lockhart also teased that the 'mom' cast will be back, which lines up with the Bess and Penny notes above.
Where we left things
Season 1 ended on a very literal haunting: in the finale, My Friends Are Lying in the Sun, Aunt Carrie encounters the ghost of her son Johnny, who appears to be lingering on Beechwood Island. If you were wondering whether the island still has a hold on these people, the show pretty much screamed 'yes' in the last five minutes.
The books in play (and a new one)
We Were Liars focuses on the Sinclair sisters and their summers on Beechwood Island — which is also the setting Lockhart keeps circling back to. Beyond Family of Liars, Lockhart just released another prequel, We Fell Apart, on November 4, 2025. She says the showrunners already have early copies, so do not be shocked if Season 2 sprinkles in a few nods to it.
Quick catch-up on Season 1
Season 1, adapted from Lockhart's 2014 novel, dropped June 18, 2025 on Prime Video and blew up fast. If you are tracking the creative DNA behind the episodes, the first run featured:
Tell Me Sweet Little Lies (directed by Nzingha Stewart), Wrap Her Up in a Package of Lies (Julie Plec), The Ties Were Black, the Lies Were White (Tara Miele), The Fourth of You Lie (Tara Miele), Lying Together in a Silver Lining (So Yong Kim), When Lies Gives You Lemons (So Yong Kim), Everybody Knows That the Captain Lied (Erica Dunton), and the finale My Friends Are Lying in the Sun (Erica Dunton).
Bottom line: Season 2 is pulling from Family of Liars but not handcuffed to it, the core cast is sticking around (moms included), and Beechwood Island is not done messing with the Sinclairs. We Were Liars is streaming now on Prime Video. Bring on the next twist.