Hot OBX summer, y'all! Outer Banks season 2 is set to sizzle with new storylines this summer. The North Carolina-set coming-of-age drama continues to follow a group of teens on the search for a huge lost treasure. Season 1 ended on some major cliffhangers, which will likely get resolved — but other complications will cause trouble for the teens and their families.
Expect more rivalry between the working class Pogues vs. wealthy elitist Kooks, a new character and more mysteries to untangle. In the season 1 finale, Pogue John B. and Kook Sarah go on the run after Sarah’s dad, Ward, frames him for the murder of Sheriff Peterkin (it was actually Sarah’s crazy brother, Rafe).
When John B. and Sarah sail out of the Outer Banks and right into a major storm, they are rescued by a cargo ship headed for Nassau in the Bahamas, right in the direction of the $400 million gold treasure John B. was searching for.
Meanwhile, the rest of the gang — Pope, Kiara and JJ — are told that John B. and Sarah most likely perished in the storm. Will John B. find his father’s treasure after Ward stole it and smuggled it to the Bahamas? Will the kids realize their friends are alive and well and headed to an even more beachy destination? Will Rafe and Ward be arrested for Peterkin’s death? Will anyone put a shirt on?
Here’s everything we know about Outer Banks season 2.
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Outer Banks season 2 release date
Netflix has set the Outer Banks season 2 release date for Friday, July 30.
The streamer first announced on July 24, 2020 that it was renewing the show, a few months after it premiered.
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Outer Banks season 2 trailer
The official, full-length Outer Banks season trailer dropped on July 14. John B and Sarah are in Nassau trying to track down the treasure, which is locked up in Ward Cameron's safe.
The trailer also shows flashes from the rest of the season, including a Pogues reunion in North Carolina. And there's a new mystery afoot, tied to a map of the entire island. Maybe there's another buried treasure out there.
The first teaser, which accompanied the release date announcement, revealed John B and Sarah on the run and hiding out in the Bahamas. Meanwhile, back at home, things for Kiara, Pope and JJ are getting wilder.
Outer Banks season 2 photos
Netflix released quite a few photos from Outer Banks season 2, with some tantalizing clues for what to expect going forward.
The photos show John B. and Sarah in the Bahamas, as well as what appears to be Sheriff Peterkin’s funeral — considering Ward and Rafe are in attendance, it looks like they’ve evaded justice for now.
Outer Banks season 2 cast
Outer Banks’ cast of hot teens led by Chase Stokes as John B. Routledge will expand in season 2 to include Carlacia Grant as Cleo, a girl John B. and Sarah encounter in the Bahamas.
The teens on Outer Banks are classified into two groups — the wealthy Kooks (most of whom live on Figure Eight island) and the working class Pogues, who make up the majority of our heroes. There’s also a few adults thrown in for good measure and conflict (RIP, Adina Porter’s Sheriff Peterkin).
The full cast includes:
- Chase Stokes as John B. Routledge, a Pogue who discovers a huge hunt for treasure tied to his late dad
- Madelyn Cline as Sarah Cameron, John B.’s Kook girlfriend and daughter of villainous Ward Cameron
- Madison Bailey as Kiara "Kie" Carrera, the daughter of a wealthy family who fits in more with the Pogues.
- Jonathan Daviss as Pope Heyward, a Pogue whose brains are his ticket out of the Outer Banks.
- Rudy Pankow as JJ Maybank, a Pogue with a temper who often gets the group into hot water.
- Austin North as Topper Thornton, the entitled head of the Kooks and Sarah’s ex, a talented surfer.
- Drew Starkey as Rafe Cameron, Sarah’s troubled brother with a history of crime and drug abuse (and murder, as of the end of season 1).
- Charles Esten as Ward Cameron, a well-to-do businessman whose nice-guy exterior hides a major villainous streak.
Several new cast members are joining Outer Banks season 2. Lost alum Elizabeth Mitchell is playing Limbrey, a long-time Charleston native who id described as "a compelling woman with a level of toxicity and menace underneath her seemingly courteous ways.”
Carlacia Grant (Roots, Greenleaf) is Cleo, a "confident and fearless" Nassau girl. She's described as "a formidable artful dodger, whose world collides with the Pogues."
Outer Banks season 2 story and spoilers
While exact spoilers and details for Outer Banks season 2 are being kept under wraps, Netflix has promised more high-octane fun in the sun.
"Season 2 is going to test our crew like never before. We've turned up the dial on everything fans loved about season one — more mystery, more romance and higher stakes," co-creators and executive producers Jonas Pate, Josh Pate and Shannon Burke said in a statement. "It's a full throttle, action-packed adventure and these photos offer a glimpse into the next chapter for our Pogues. All we can say for now is buckle up, it's going to be a wild ride."
After the show’s debut in 2020, Jonas Pate revealed that Ward won’t be the only villain going forward. "Ward is a very crafty character, as you saw in the first season," Pate said. "He's very slippery … But we'll also introduce some new villains too. So the story will broaden a little bit as we go into season 2."
Pate also said that despite John B. resolving the mystery of the Royal Merchant’s lost gold, "There will definitely be some new mysteries and some new ideas. It all comes off the same spine of the same story but it branches out in ways that hopefully the audience won't see coming."
Madelyn Cline told Entertainment Weekly that there is a "micro time jump" when Outer Banks season 2 starts.
"[There’s] the kind of shock where you turn the page … and you read that moment and you [gasp] and then your mind starts going a thousand miles a minute. You’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is going to be so fun to shoot.’”
What's next for Netflix? The most highly anticipated show has to be Stranger Things season 4. And more is coming soon — this winter brings Cobra Kai season 4, You season 3 and The Witcher season 2.
Further down the road, Emily in Paris season 2, Sex Education season 3, Virgin River season 3 and Elite season 5 are all in the works.
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Lee is a New York-based writer and editor with years of experience covering video games and other entertainment. When he's not writing, Lee can be found on Twitter ranting about soap operas, theorizing on true crime and playing Final Fantasy XIV. Lee spent nearly a decade at Dan's Papers, where he learned more about the Hamptons than he thought possible.