One of Taylor Sheridan’s most popular shows is officially back. The hit action thriller series starring Zoe Saldaña and Nicole Kidman returns in the first trailer for what already looks like the most explosive season yet. Paramount+ has released the official teaser for Lioness Season 3, which is set to premiere on Aug. 2. The new episodes follow CIA officer McNamara (Saldaña) as she deals with conflicts at home and abroad. As the brief trailer suggests, audiences will get a closer, more personal look at the characters’ lives, but the footage still makes it clear that the blockbuster action the series is known for is still as present as ever before. While the one-minute preview keeps the overall plot under lock and key, it confirms that the star-studded cast is back in full form. Lioness Season 3 is set to feature new and familiar faces alongside Saldaña and Kidman, including Morgan Freeman, Laysla De Oliveira, Genesis Rodriguez, Dave Annable, Michael Kelly, Ian Bohen, Sandi Todorovic, LaMonica Garrett, and Thad Luckinbill. Taylor Sheridan is back as writer, showrunner, and executive producer on the Paramount+ series. While the TV mogul is known for spreading himself across several franchises in varying capacities, Sheridan has his prints all over Lioness, which has certainly served the series well so far. Watch the official teaser below:

Lioness brings the action back home as the series continues to dive deeper into Joe McNamara and her dual life, whose lines are beginning to blur. Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Zoe Saldaña revealed that she worked closely with Taylor Sheridan to develop the story for the latest season. She called her role in the upcoming episodes especially “demanding,” going as far as to say that she didn’t know if she was going to be able to “pull it off.” Saldaña confirmed that her protagonist is at a major crossroads in Lioness Season 3:
“Joe is really finding herself at a crossroads. She is a woman that gave an oath and has every desire in fulfilling it — until she can’t anymore. What she wasn’t expecting was to be pulled back home. By choosing to start a family, that kind of duality has become a quite intense and stressful life for her to live, to try to make sure that she’s not failing in any of these places. And that feels relatable to me. Once women become mothers, we have to work twice as hard, and there are moments in which it does feel achievable, and there are moments in which you’re failing at everything because you have to give 120 percent in both places. But you’re only human.”
After the first season received mixed reviews from critics in 2023, Lioness Season 2 was seen as a major step-up in every way, boasting a 90% on Rotten Tomatoes. The third season will look to keep the momentum going, and the increased focus on the emotional foundation of the narrative certainly bodes well for the show’s return this August.

Release Date

July 23, 2023

Network

Paramount+

Directors

John Hillcoat, Anthony Byrne, Paul Cameron, Stephen Kay, Taylor Sheridan

Laysla De Oliveira

Cruz Manuelos