HBO’s long-awaited third season of Big Little Lies took a small but significant step forward this week, with the series filming for one day at Warner Bros. Studios Burbank’s Ranch Lot. The shoot took place Thursday, October 29, and included Merrin Dungey, who returns as Detective Adrienne Quinlan.
The brief session does not mean the full cast has begun shooting the new season. Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Zoë Kravitz and Shailene Woodley were not involved in Thursday’s filming. Full production is expected to begin in 2027, although HBO has not announced a firm start date.
The one-day shoot was reportedly arranged so the production could preserve an approved California state tax credit. California Film Commission rules generally require principal photography to begin within 180 calendar days after a project receives its Credit Allocation Letter. Productions with at least $100 million in qualified expenditures can receive up to 240 days.
The exact date of the Big Little Lies allocation letter has not been made public. Variety reported that insiders said the October shoot was held specifically to satisfy the timing requirement. HBO declined to comment on the filming.
A director for the full third season has also not been announced. The director who handled Thursday’s work was already connected to the series and had Directors Guild of America approval, according to Variety.
Dungey’s participation provides one of the first concrete signs of which supporting characters may return. Her Detective Quinlan investigated the death at the center of the earlier seasons and remained suspicious of the five women who became known as the Monterey Five.
The series follows Celeste Wright, Madeline Mackenzie, Renata Klein, Jane Chapman and Bonnie Carlson, played by Kidman, Witherspoon, Dern, Woodley and Kravitz. Their lives become connected through their children and a violent death that drives much of the show’s mystery.
Big Little Lies debuted on HBO in 2017 and was initially presented as a limited series. Its first season was based on Liane Moriarty’s 2014 novel of the same name. Strong reviews and awards helped lead to a second season in 2019, with Meryl Streep joining the cast as Mary Louise Wright.
The path to a third season has taken years. Kidman publicly suggested in November 2023 that another season was moving forward. Development became more concrete in September 2025, when Francesca Sloane, co-creator of Mr. & Mrs. Smith, joined the project to write the first episode and serve as an executive producer.
Sloane is executive producing with David E. Kelley, Kidman and Witherspoon. Kelley created the television adaptation and has also supported keeping production in California. The first two seasons were filmed in the state even though the show did not receive the same tax incentive for those earlier seasons.
Scheduling has remained one of the biggest practical issues. HBO executives have previously acknowledged the difficulty of coordinating a cast filled with actors who have other film and television commitments. The October 29 shoot allowed the production to begin principal photography without requiring the full ensemble to assemble immediately.
The story also has new source material. Moriarty released Big Little Truths on August 25, 2026. The sequel novel returns to Madeline, Celeste, Jane, Renata and Bonnie roughly 10 years after the events of the original book.
Publisher Penguin Random House says the women’s children are now teenagers and the story begins after a threatening package reaches a high school principal. The novel is expected to provide the foundation for the television show’s third season, although the adaptation may not follow the book exactly.
That distinction matters because the television series has already made major changes from Moriarty’s novels. The books are set around the fictional Pirriwee Peninsula in Australia, while HBO moved the story to Monterey, California. The television version also developed its own continuity during the second season.
No release date has been announced for Season 3, and HBO has not revealed an episode count or complete cast list. The October filming therefore represents a technical start to production rather than the beginning of a normal full-season shooting schedule.
The one-day session is still a notable development after the show’s seven-year absence from HBO. It confirms that cameras have rolled on material connected to the third season while producers continue preparing for the larger production.
For now, the clearest timetable is that full filming is expected sometime in 2027. Until HBO announces a start date, director and returning cast, the October 29 shoot remains the first visible production step toward bringing the Monterey Five back to television.