'Never Have I Ever' Season 3: What We Know About Premiere Date, Plot, Cast
Get in, folks. We're going back to high school. "Never Have I Ever," Netflix's charming high school-set series — beloved by teens, adults and critics alike — is returning for a third season, one year after season two dropped.
"Never Have I Ever" follows 16-year-old Devi Vishwakumar, played by newcomer Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, as she navigates love, life, friendship, grief, cultural differences and beyond, all in the hallways of Sherman Oaks High School. John McEnroe — yes, the tennis legend — narrates the action.
Series creators Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher drew from their own experiences in high school when creating the show. "We were both nerds in high school, but we were ambitious and wanted to have boyfriends. I felt that we didn't get to see that side of nerds," Kaling told TODAY in 2021.
For the way she breaks on-screen stereotypes, Devi is especially near to Kaling's heart. "Asian women — we're usually depicted as demure. I like this character because she's feisty and smart, and has a little bit of an anger problem," Kaling added to TODAY.
Here's what you need to know about the show's forthcoming third season.
"Never Have I Ever" will return for season 3 on August 12
In March, Kaling announced that season three of "Never Have I Ever" would land on Netflix at some point in the summer of 2022. Now, we know a date: August 12.
Season 3 picks up right where season 2 left off
In the season two finale, Devi is faced, once again, with her eternal choice: Should she pursue her connection with Paxton (Darren Barnet) or Ben (Jaren Lewison)? Since Kaling promised “steamy adventures” in her announcement post, it's safe to predict another round of #Bevi vs. #Daxton come season three.
Season two of "Never Have I Ever" culminates at a winter dance, where both of Devi's love interests gather under the bluish lights. Devi and Paxton have their first dance as a couple. This is the public confirmation of their coupledom that Devi has been waiting for — but her heart might be with Ben.
Watching Paxton and Devi dance, Eleanor (Ramona Young) tells Ben that she Devi had actually been pining over him for weeks, but thought he was stuck on Aneesa. “After you took her to Malibu, she wanted to choose you,” said Eleanor. “Just for the record, it’s not always been him.”
The trailer shows Devi and Paxton making their couple debut at school
In season 2, Paxton wasn't exactly jazzed at the idea of going public with Devi (after all, she was also dating Ben behind his back and that kind of stung), but the couple is showing some major PDA in the new trailer. At the beginning, the duo walk down the halls of their high school as everyone looks on in amazement. Soon enough, Devi realizes that being in a relationship with the hottest guy in school comes with its pros and cons.
“Your social status has skyrocketed so much that now people hate you,” Devi’s friend Eleanor Wong says. Then Devi overhears some popular girls gossiping about her in the bathroom and wondering why Paxton would be with her.
“She’s dying right? It’s like a deathbed, last wishes thing?” one girl says. Another comments, “Maybe she’s just a huge slut.”
All that attention seems to mess with Devi's self confidence a bit, and she asks Paxton why he likes her in one scene of the trailer.
"No one else thinks we make any sense,” she asserts. Paxton replies, “No, you don’t think we make any sense.”
Devi has a third potential love interest in season 3
Earlier this year, Netflix revealed that Anriduh Pisharody will be joining the season three cast. His character, Des, is described as being “as smart as Devi,” but attends a private school.
In the trailer, Devi is at a party with her friends when she explains that some random guy her mom knows is on his way.
“My mom wouldn’t let me come unless I brought one of her friends’ loser kids. So if you see an Indian dork come through that door, let me know,” she says.
Fabiola Torres, played by Lee Rodriguez, instantly takes notice when Des arrives. “I see an Indian guy coming through the door but he definitely does not look like a dork,” she says.
And she’s right: Des is a total hottie.
Of course, expect to see all the regulars in season three, too. In addition to Vishwakumar, Darren Barnet (Paxton), Jaren Lewison (Ben), Lee Rodriguez (Fabiola) and Ramona Young (Eleanor) will return as Devi’s high school crew. On the family front, expect to see Poorna Jagannathan, who plays Devi’s mom Nalini, and Richa Moorjani, Devi’s cousin Kamala.
Season 2's new additions will be back: Megan Suri as Aneesa, Ben’s prospective love interest, and Utkarsh Ambudkar Devi’s English teacher, Manish Kulkarni.
In addition, Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe's son Deacon Phillippe makes his acting debut this season and plays one of Des' friends.
There will be 10 episodes in season 3
To tide fans over until the debut of season 3, Netflix recently unveiled almost all of the episode titles. Each one is aptly titled "Never Have I Ever..." at the beginning then has a short phrase to describe each episode.
From the looks of it, Devi has an action-packed season ahead! Here's a sneak peek at the episode titles:
... been slut shamed
... had my own troll
... had a valentine
... made someone jealous
... been ghosted
.... had a breakdown
... cheated
... hooked up w/ my bf
... had an... spoiler (this one's a surprise for now, apparently)
... lived the dream
The show will end with its fourth and final season.
Along with the announcement about season three's release date, Netflix confirmed that the series would end with season four. It's fitting: High school is typically four years, and so that's all the time audiences get with Devi. But we're not ready to graduate from "Never Have I Ever" just yet.
Luckily, there's one more season left after you binge-watch season 3, and Ramakrishnan recently teased the final chapter of Devi's story on her Twitter account.
— Maitreyi Ramakrishnan (@ramakrishnannn) March 8, 2022
“I am so proud of us all and everything this show has accomplished ... this show is close to my heart. It is my privilege to help create this story so I promise I’ll give it my all and make you all proud. Make myself proud too,” she wrote. “Let’s do this one more time, yeah?”
