It’s time to return to Monterey.
“Big Little Lies” Season 3 is officially in the works, Variety and Deadline confirmed Thursday.
“Mr. and Mrs. Smith” co-creator and showrunner Francesca Sloane has reportedly been hired to write the first episode of the HBO drama’s third season and executive produce the installment as part of a two-year deal with the network.
Sloane will join series creator David E. Kelley and stars Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman on the executive producing team.
Witherspoon, 49, and Kidman, 58, are also “leading the cast” in the new season, per Variety.
The Post has reached out to HBO and reps for Kelley, Kidman and Witherspoon for comment.
Season 1 of “Big Little Lies” premiered in February 2017 and revolved around a murder in the upscale community of Monterey on the California coast.
The cast included Kidman, Witherspoon, Shailene Woodley, Laura Dern, Zoë Kravitz, Iain Armitage, Alexander Skarsgård, James Tupper, Jeffrey Nordling and Adam Scott.
The first season garnered 8 Emmy Awards, including taking home the statuette for Outstanding Limited Series, and was nominated for 16.
Season 2 — which picked up in the aftermath of Perry Wright’s (Skarsgård) murder and featured Meryl Streep — premiered in June 2019.
The sophomore season received five Emmy nominations in 2020, including nods for Dern and Streep, but did not win any awards.
There’s been talk about “Big Little Lies” Season 3 from the creator and stars over the past few years.
“We’re at work on it,” Kidman told Variety in Jan. 2024, adding that she and Witherspoon are “texting every day . . . And there’s a timeline and we’re doing it.”
Witherspoon, for her part, told Variety that same month: “We are working on it. Nic and I have been working on it a lot.”
Meanwhile, HBO and Max content chairman and CEO Casey Bloys said at the time that he heard “a little bit about the idea,” and that Witherspoon and Kidman have been in touch with “Big Little Lies” author Liane Moriarty.
In June, Kelley, 69, told People about Season 3, “We’re hoping it happens.”
“We had a great time doing the first two seasons and we all want to do it again,” the TV producer continued. “I’m hopeful it’ll happen.”
Kelley also said that it’s “pretty nice to hear” that the cast is interested in returning.
“We haven’t really all gotten together to brainstorm yet, but again, it’s a great stable of talent. Once we do [get together], I think we have a good shot of figuring it out,” he explained.
Sadly, the third season will not involve Jean-Marc Vallée, the show’s Emmy-winning director who died at age 58 in December 2021.
The following year, Kravitz, 36, said she didn’t think Season 3 would happen because of the director’s death.
“We talked about doing a season 3 a lot. Unfortunately, Jean-Marc Vallée, our incredible director, passed away this last year,” the “Batman” star told GQ in November 2022.
“It’s heartbreaking. I can’t imagine going on without him,” Kravitz added. “He really was the visionary for that show.”
