Julie Bowen , Anna Camp , and Bruce Campbell joined forces to star in Peacock ‘s new horror/thriller series, Hysteria , which follows a group of high school students and their parents as they navigate the Satanic Panic of the 1980s. Warning: this article contains spoilers for Season 1 of Hysteria. Read at your own risk.
After local high school quarterback Ryan Hudson goes missing, mass panic descends upon the town as they fear his disappearance (and eventual death) was the result of a Satanic ritual of some sorts. Desperate to impress the cool girl in school, Dylan — along with his friends Jordy and Spud — capitalize on the hysteria by creating a fake cult to promote their heavy metal band. While the kids dabble in fake Satanism, their parents — particularly Bowen’s character, Linda — become victims of real supernatural activity, ultimately leading to Linda’s demonic possession.
Meanwhile, Tracy Whitehead — a devoutly religious mother within the community — finds herself at the center of Ryan’s death when, in a psychotic attempt to “reprogram” her rebellious daughter Faith, has the teenagers kidnapped by a man who goes by “The Reverend.” When Ryan succumbs to an asthma attack amid the abduction and Faith breaks free from her prison cell at The Reverend’s house, Tracy stops at nothing to cover up their part in Ryan’s death. So, how did Hysteria end? Will there be a second season? We asked the executive producers! Keep reading for everything we know about the future of Hysteria.
How did Hysteria Season 1 end? Hysteria ‘s first season surely ended with a bang. Desperate to save her daughter from The Reverend — who has now threatened both of their lives if the truth about Ryan’s death is unveiled — Tracy goes to extreme lengths to cover everything up. But how? Following Linda’s demonic possession, Tracy offers to perform an exorcism in front of the entire town.
However, what she truly wants is for Linda to deliver a false confession that her son, Dylan, was the one who murdered Ryan. While Tracy is unable to solicit a confession, she is able to expel the demon from Linda, making her a local hero — even as she’s hauled away in handcuffs for her role in Ryan’s death. But just when life seems to return to normal in this small town, Satan rears his ugly head around the corner, staring directly at Linda and seemingly setting up the show for a second season.
Will there be a Hysteria Season 2? Peacock has not yet confirmed a second season of Hysteria. However, executive producers Matthew Scott Kane and David A. Goodman revealed to DECIDER that Season 2 is something they’re already thinking about.
“A second season is on the table but has not been confirmed by any means, has not been greenlit. If we were to go in there, I have a really strong idea of what that season looks like,” Kane said over a Zoom interview, noting that “Chapter 2 is obviously going to be referencing a lot of what happens at the end of Chapter 1.” According to Goodman, they haven’t quite wrapped up the themes of Season 1.
“There’s still plenty to do,” he said. “We wrap up certain aspects of the story. And again, we take all our characters to the edge and over the edge.
But there’s still places to go in Season 2. I’m very excited by the possibility.” What could happen in Hysteria Season 2? At the end of Season 1, Dylan’s love interest (and Chief Dandridge’s granddaughter) Judith is sent to live in L.
A. with her father after nearly gutting a classmate in a Satanic ritual. Tracy gets arrested for the murder of Ryan Hudson.
And Linda may or may not still be dealing with paranormal activity post-exorcism. With all that being said, the possibilities for Season 2 are endless! After watching the final two episodes, we caught up with Kane and Goodman in the DECIDER studio, where they vaguely dished on their plans for Season 2. “I think this was all about a small town,” Kane said.
“It’s going to stay about a small town, but I think there will be visitors to that town from coasts, from all over, people who may come in and start a ruckus all over again.” Goodman teased that the show could even go beyond the fictional small-town in Michigan, and follow Judith to the City of Angels. “Well, I mean, L.
A. is the den of evil,” he said. “But absolutely, if we’re sending her to L.
A., we’re going to see L.A.
in the late ’80s and how this affects this young woman.” Camp, who plays Tracy, also revealed where she would like to see her character end up next season. “I’ve thought about this.
Not gonna lie. I would love to see Tracy obviously get off of the crime and not go to prison,” she said. “I would love for her to find a romantic love interest.
We don’t know who Faith’s father is yet, so he hasn’t been established. So I’d love to know who that person is ..
. And also, I wouldn’t mind seeing a little televangelist moment for Tracy.” Speaking to Tracy’s seemingly non-existent love life, Camp also joked that her character “needs to get laid.
” Amen! How to watch Hysteria: Hysteria is currently streaming on Peacock. You can subscribe to the platform for as low as $7.99 per month.
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‘Hysteria’ Executive Producers Say Season 2 “Is On The Table”
Creator Matthew Scott Kane said he has a "really strong idea of what that season looks like."