Severance creators finally reveal why Season 2 took so long

Adam Scott as Mark in Severance Season 2Apple TV+

Waiting for Severance Season 2 has felt like the longest day at the office, but with the release date just around the corner, creators Dan Erickson and Ben Stiller have finally explained what happened. 

Severance Season 1 premiered in February 2022, quickly earning a reputation as Apple TV’s best series thanks to its blend of dark humor, surreal sci-fi beats, top tier character development, and a twisty story at the center of it. 

However, it also ended on a whopper of a cliffhanger, one that left us gagging for more. And then we waited… and waited. 

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There were rumors, of course. Back in 2023, reports of a falling out between showrunners surfaced, although Stiller refuted the claims. There were the Hollywood strikes to take into consideration too. 

Severance Season 2 had to be “perfect”

Tramell Tillman as Milchick in Severance Season 2Apple TV+

But now we no longer have to speculate, as Severance creator Erickson and executive producer and director Stiller have spilled the beans on the three-year wait in a new interview with Vanity Fair. 

One of the reasons is completely understandable: they wanted to make sure it was perfect. “On a practical level, it’s a very intricate show,” said Erickson. 

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“Each character has two lives – essentially, two personalities – and we are expanding. For me, the writing was the most painstaking part of the process because there were so many ways we could go. 

“And sometimes we would come up with something that worked perfectly well on paper, and then it wouldn’t be until we got there and we’re shooting it that we realize: this isn’t quite it. We were never willing to let that turn it into something that wasn’t perfect.”

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Apple TV

Stiller went on to explain that the strikes also played a part. “It took a while to write Season 2. Then we started to shoot in October of 2022, and we got shut down by the strike in May [2023],” he said. 

“At that point, we had completed about seven of our 10 episodes, and then we had to regroup after the strike. It takes us a while to prep the show. And so, we didn’t start shooting until January [2024]. Then we shot from January to May to finish the last three episodes.”

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Thankfully, the wait will be worth it. We’ve all seen what can happen when fan demand leads to rushed second seasons (*cough* True Detective *cough*). But the cast and crew have put time into making sure the follow-up is as strong as the first. 

“[We had] entire locations that we were planning to go to. We had already built or partially built them when we realized, ‘Oh, that’s not going to work,’” added Erickson.

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“Those aren’t always fun calls to have with the studio, where you’re like, ‘Hey, you know that thing you put a lot of resources into? Well, we’re not going to do it now, or we’re going to do something that’s totally different.’ 

“But again, at the end of the day, it’s worth it.”

As well as the return of Mark (Adam Scott), Helly (Britt Lower), Dylan (Zach Cherry), and Irving (John Turturro), Severance Season 2 will be introducing new characters, including the latest Lumon hires. 

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You’ve got Miss Huang (Sarah Bock), who looks a little too young to be joining the Macrodata Refinement Department (or any department for that matter), as well as Gwendoline Christie in a currently undisclosed role. 

In a new Severance Season 2 image, Christie’s character has dirt on her face and a Lumon cowbell, indicating that she may have ties to the most bizarre mystery from Season 1: the goat floor. 

Severance Season 2 premieres on Apple TV+ on January 17, 2025. Until then, check out the burning questions we need it to answer, find more TV shows streaming this month, and take a look at our list of the best series of 2024.

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