Big Little Lies Season 3 Shot for One Day to Keep Tax Credit

HBO's "Big Little Lies" began filming Season 3 this week — for exactly one day. The shoot took place Thursday at The Ranch Lot on the Warner Bros. Studios Burbank lot, with Merrin Dungey, who has played Detective Adrienne Quinlan since the series launched, in front of the camera.

Full production is not expected to start until next year, and no date has been set. Insiders said the single day of principal photography served one purpose: preserving the show's already-approved California state tax credit.

Under California's incentive rules, principal photography must begin within 180 calendar days of a project's Conditional Allocation Letter — or 240 days for projects with a qualified expenditure budget of $100 million or more. When "Big Little Lies" received its CAL has not been disclosed. HBO declined to comment, and the network has not officially announced the return of production.

Who directed the one-day shoot?

A director for Season 3 has not been confirmed. Insiders said the person behind the camera this week was someone already involved with "Big Little Lies" and approved by the Directors Guild of America. The name stays under wraps.

Executive producer David E. Kelley has pushed to keep the production in California. The first two seasons were also shot in the state, without tax incentives. Season 1 aired in 2017; Season 2 followed in 2019.

The series stars Nicole Kidman (Celeste), Reese Witherspoon (Madeline) and Laura Dern (Renata) as Monterey friends whose children attend the same school. They befriend Shailene Woodley's Jane, new to the school, and a dark secret eventually draws them into a homicide investigation. Zoë Kravitz, Alexander Skarsgård, Adam Scott, James Tupper and Jeffrey Nordling hold supporting roles; Meryl Streep joined in Season 2.

Dungey's Det. Quinlan investigates the murder at the center of the show and keeps deep suspicions about the "Monterey 5" — Celeste, Madeline, Renata, Jane and Kravitz's Bonnie.

What does this change for viewers?

Not much yet. The one-day shoot signals the project is alive and holding onto its money, but it does not establish a start date, a director or a premiere window. Everything a viewer would recognize as Season 3 remains unscheduled.

Momentum toward a third season built slowly. Nicole Kidman said in November 2023 that a new season could happen. In September 2025, Francesca Sloane ("Mr. and Mrs. Smith") joined to write the first episode and executive produce alongside Kelley, Kidman and Witherspoon.

The story has a source text. In August, "Big Little Lies" author Liane Moriarty published "Big Little Truths," a new novel continuing the stories of Madeline, Celeste, Jane, Renata and Bonnie a decade on. The book is expected to serve as the backbone of the Season 3 storyline — though HBO has confirmed none of these details itself.

Dungey's schedule suggests she will remain busy regardless. Her recent credits include "Malcolm in the Middle: Life's Still Unfair," "Chicago Med," "The Lincoln Lawyer," "S.W.A.T." and "Shining Vale," alongside earlier work on "Alias," "The King of Queens" and "Once Upon a Time."

The practical takeaway: the tax credit is safe, the cast includes at least one familiar detective, and a Moriarty novel sits ready as source material. What is still missing — a locked start date, a named director, an HBO announcement — will tell viewers when Monterey actually reopens.