Lionessseason 2’s release date has now been confirmed following the release of season 1 last year. Created by Taylor Sheridan, who is best known as the mind behind theYellowstoneuniverse, the hit Paramount Plus series stars Zoe Saldaña as Joe, a CIA operative, and Nicole Kidman as Kaitlyn Meade, her boss, who together run a specialized team that puts female agents deep behind enemy lines. After a successful season 1,Lionessseason 2 is now confirmed, with filming having gotten underway earlier this year.
Deadlinenow reveals thatLionessseason 2 will premiere on June 15, 2025. The Sunday night premiere will include the first two episodes of the season, with the remainder then releasing weekly. You can read the season 2 synopsis accompanying the announcement below:
In Season 2, as the CIA’s fight against terror moves closer to home, Joe (Saldaña), Kaitlyn (Kidman), and Byron (Michael Kelly) enlist a new Lioness operative to infiltrate a previously unknown threat. With pressure mounting from all sides, Joe is forced to confront the profound personal sacrifices she has made as the leader of the Lioness program.
How Will Lioness Season 2 Compare To Season 1?
The Taylor Sheridan Drama Is Making Some Changes
Lionessseason 1 features Saldaña in a starring role, but much of the action actually involves Laysla De Oliveira’s Cruz Manuelos. Cruz is Joe’s Lioness program recruit in season 1, and she’s the one who infiltrates the arms dealer’s inner circle and takes him down. While it hasn’t been confirmed one way or another, much of what’s been revealed aboutLionessseason 2suggests that Cruz won’t be a part of the upcoming batch of episodes.
Special Ops: Lioness Season 1 Recap & Ending Explained
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As teased in the synopsis above, Joe and her team will be recruiting a new agent in season 2, and this new figure will seemingly be taking Cruz’s place.Genesis Rodriguez joins theLionessseason 2 cast as Josie, a helicopter pilot, and it’s possible that Josie is this new recruit being referred to. This change could reflect how the Sheridan show continues if it gets renewed for season 3 and beyond, with new Lioness recruits joining for their own standalone outings that get concluded by the end of each season.
Thad Luckinbill is confirmed to return as Kyle to play an expanded role inLionessseason 2.
Returning to season 2, however, Morgan Freeman is poised to play a larger role as Secretary of State Mullins this time around after appearing very briefly in season 1. This could suggest thatthe Lioness program is facing more external pressure and that bureaucratic red tape will become more of a factorin the new batch of episodes. Many questions still remain aboutLionessseason 2, but a trailer for the show’s sophomore outing likely isn’t far off.
Will Lioness Season 2 Be The Last One?
How Long The Taylor Sheridan Series Could Run For
As of writing, no announcements have been made regarding the future ofLionessbeyond season 2. Critically, season 1 wasn’t particularly well received. As seen in the chart below, the Paramount series has a 56% critics' score onRotten Tomatoes, with reviews taking issue with the fairly by-the-numbers storytelling and lack of any genuine surprises. It’s with audiences, however, thatLionesssucceeded, Metacritc user score notwithstanding.
56%
80%
56/100
5.4/10
7.7/10
Lioness' 80% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes is evidently indicative of the show’s viewership. While specific figures regarding season 1 are hard to come by,Colliderpreviously revealed that episode 1 garnered 6 million viewers across Paramount Plus and linear in its first three days. While a strong critics' response is always a nice bonus, it’s viewership that determines whether a series gets renewed or not, andLionessmust have pulled strong enough numbers to justify a continuation.
Another positive sign forLionessis Sheridan’s track record when it comes to shows.Yellowstoneseason 5 part 2is on the horizon, and there’s been talk of a potential season 6. While1883was a limited series,1923is returning for season 2, and could continue beyond that.YellowstonespinoffThe Madisonis also on the way. ThoughLionessisn’t connected toYellowstonein any way,Sheridan is evidently creating television that people want to watch, and it’s certainly possible that the Saldaña-starring series returns for multiple more seasons in the years ahead.
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The story of the Dutton ranch continued in the 20th century with 1923, and a second season arrived in 2025 that wrapped up this chapter of franchise.
Could Lioness Get Its Own Yellowstone-Like Universe?
What Spinoffs Could Be About
Yellowstoneand its spinoffs have been wildly popular, with viewers clearly interested in learning more about the history of the Dutton family and their ranch.Lionessfeatures a very different premise, but it’s one that could be expanded in a similar way. Saldaña’s character, for example, is a seasoned CIA veteran when the show starts, buta prequel could explore Joe’s history with the Agency and how she came to start the titular program.
ALionessspinoff show could also pivot away from Joe and chronicle the early days of Meade’s time in the Agency in the ’80s or ’90s. A present day spinoff could similarly follow Luckinbill’s Kyle and his own work at the CIA. While there’s seemingly nothing on the cards just yet in terms of a further expansion of theLionessuniverse, the upcoming season 2 could introduce new elements that paint a clearer path forward for the show.
Lioness
Cast
Special Ops: Lioness is a Paramount+ original series starring Zoe Saldana and Nicole Kidman. The series centers on a marine and a CIA agent who work together with the daughter of a dangerous terrorist group to destroy the organization. Taylor Sheridan (Yellowstone co-creator) and Jill Wagner created the series, which was directed by Paul Cameron and Anthony Byrne.
