Pen15 Season 3: Renewed or Cancelled?

Created by Maya Erskine, Anna Konkle, and Sam Zvibleman, Hulu’s ‘Pen15’ is a comedy series that follows two best friends Maya Ishii-Peters and Anna Kone, who are exploring the nuances of their seventh-grade school life together. As the transition from childhood to teenage poses complications for both of them, Maya and Anna find comfort and strength in each other. As the series progresses, they encounter harsh realities and delights of middle school life.

The teen show originally released on February 8, 2019. The inaugural season received critical acclaim and was lauded as one of the breakthroughs of the year. Along with the critical consensus, the show also received multiple Emmy nominations over two seasons. Upon the release of season 2, fans must be wondering about the return of Anna and Maya to the screens. On that note, let us share everything you need to know about ‘Pen15’ season 3!

Pen15 Season 3 Release Date

‘Pen15’ season 2 landed on Hulu in two parts — part 1 premiered on September 18, 2020, and part 2 released on December 3, 2021. An animated special landed on August 27, 2021. Including the animated special, the second season comprises 15 episodes with a runtime of 27–38 minutes each.

As far as the third season is concerned, here’s what we know. On November 29, 2021, Hulu confirmed that ‘Pen15’ would end with the second part of season 2. A representative from the streaming platform told Variety that co-creators Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle “feel the story they wanted to tell has come to an end with the upcoming second half of Season 2.”

At the Emmy’s FYC (For Your Consideration) event conducted prior to the release of the second installment of season 2, Anna Konkle and Maya Erskine explained the reasons behind the decision. “When we [creators Konkle and Erskine] first talked about making the show 10 years ago, we talked about it in three chapters. And even though [second half of the second season] is called [Season] 2B, this feels like a third season to us,” Konkle said.

“It feels like we did it. For now. The other part of it is, we’ve learned that show running, acting, producing, it’s all the most creatively fulfilling experience I could ever imagine in my entire life and, like, a recipe for burning out,” the co-creator added. Meanwhile, Erskine said that the conclusion was inevitable to protect the show’s conceit of the protagonists getting trapped in seventh grade.

The COVID-19 pandemic might have also influenced the creator duo to conclude the show after the second season. The pandemic severely affected the production of season 2, forcing the crew to stop filming for a while. With the second bunch of episodes, the total episodes of the second season became 15, five episodes more than season 1. As mentioned by Konkle, the feeling of burning out might have motivated the duo to include the narrative of season 3 within the additional episodes of season 2 instead of creating an individual season for it.

Considering the aforementioned factors, it is unlikely that ‘Pen15’ season 3 will get made. At the FYC event, Konkle also expressed her feelings about concluding the show. “To write and work and manage a business together and a creative endeavor and all that, it’s challenging and fulfilling and complicated and beautiful and all these things. And it’s been a whirlwind. Life has not stopped, it’s been 15-hour days for years. So there’s a part of me that’s scared to stop. And I haven’t fully processed that it’s over,” she added.

Even though the conclusion of ‘PEN15’ with the second season is certain for now, Hulu is ready for more of the show in the future. There’s still hope, as a representative of the streaming platform told Variety, “Hulu will continue to leave the door open for more ‘Pen15’ in the future and look forward to working with [Erskine and Konkle] again.”

Read More: Is Pen15 a True Story?

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