The news was confirmed this morning by Variety, who revealed Meryl will play Mary Louise Wright, the mother of Perry Wright (Alexander Skarsgård). Concerned for the well-being of her grandchildren following her son’s death, Mary Louise arrives in Monterey seeking answers.
As fans of the series know, Perry's death was the result of an attack on both his wife Celeste Wright (Nicole Kidman) and his rape victim Jane Chapman (Shailene Woodley), that saw Bonnie Carlson (Zoë Kravitz) push him down the stairs in an attempt to get him off the women. The five women banded together to alter the story during police interviews, saying he "fell" to help Bonnie avoid punishment. The series ended on the cliffhanger, with a skeptical detective staring at the women through binoculars.
A second season was never planned for Big Little Lies, with the novel ending in a similar way to the final episode. It took some convincing, but at the end of the day fan support for more lead to the announcement that they would continue to tell the story of the women in Monterey.
HBO said in a statement that season 2 would explore the "malignancy of lies, the durability of friendships, the fragility of marriage and, of course, the vicious ferocity of sound parenting. Relationships will fray, loyalties will erode … the potential for emotional and bodily injury shall loom."
