You Only Need 14 Hours To Binge One Of HBO's Best Shows Of All Time

One of HBO's most buzziest shows, Big Little Lies, is tailor-made for a weekend binge. This sets it apart from many of the other best HBO shows of all time, as the series most famously associated with the platform, from The Sopranos to Sex and the City, are long-running and have many seasons, requiring a much greater time commitment to enjoy.

Interestingly, like its fellow HBO show The White Lotus, Big Little Lies was originally billed as a miniseries. However, after it became a smash hit with critics and audiences alike, and cleaned up at the Emmy Awards, the series was renewed for a second season — and it's easy to see why.

What Is Big Little Lies About?

Based on the bestselling novel by Liane Moriarty, Big Little Lies is equal parts domestic drama and mystery thriller. Set in the wealthy beach community of Monterey, California — which practically serves as a character itself — the story centers on a group of mothers who all lead seemingly perfect lives but hide dark personal secrets.

It's immediately established that these "big little lies" will come bubbling to the surface in a lethal way, as the show begins with a flash-forward to a glamorous parent fundraiser turned crime scene, where it's revealed that someone has died. We then go back to the first day of school, in which the core group of mothers drop off their first-grade children.

It doesn't take long for tensions to rise when a bullying incident amongst the kids creates a divide between the moms, deepening the conflict in the riveting lead-up to the deadly fundraiser. Though this reads as a soapy premise, Big Little Lies delivers depth along with its thrills, exploring complex topics such as abuse, trauma, and systemic misogyny.

Up until Big Little Lies' premiere, the prestige television landscape was largely male-dominated, but the HBO series brought female-driven stories to the table. Since its release, dozens of shows have tried to replicate the magic of Big Little Lies, and though some, like All Her Fault, have come close, there's no beating the original.

Big Little Lies Boasts An Impressive Cast

Though the staunch delineation between movie stars and TV stars is a thing of the past, with plenty of actors freely flitting back and forth between the mediums, you'd be hard-pressed to find a show that matches the starpower of the Big Little Lies cast. The "Monterey Five" actresses boast three Oscar winners in Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, and Laura Dern, while Academy favorite Meryl Streep joined the cast in season 2.

Even the Big Little Lies cast members who haven't received Oscar gold are some of Hollywood's most acclaimed actors, and they include Shailene Woodley, Zoë Kravitz, Adam Scott, and Alexander Skarsgård, who won a Primetime Emmy for his role as abusive husband Perry Wright. (Kidman also won an Emmy for her performance as his wife, Celeste.)

Every member of this starry cast is at the top of their game here. The very nature of the show allows the actors to play at their melodramatic, campy best while also delivering some of the most nuanced, harrowing performances of their careers.

Big Little Lies Season 3 Is In Development

Despite its initial success, the road for Big Little Lies has been bumpy. Many viewers were clamoring for a second season after devouring the first, which HBO eagerly greenlit despite the follow-up not having any source material to adapt. Though Streep was a welcome addition to the cast as Perry's passive-aggressive mother, Mary Louise, Big Little Lies season 2 wasn't nearly as well-received as its predecessor.

Following the season 2 finale in 2019, there was talk of a third installment, but this eventually died down until it seemed like it would never come to fruition. However, in 2025, Big Little Lies season 3 was officially confirmed. Though official details have been scarce, it has been revealed that Mr. & Mrs. Smith co-creator Francesca Sloane would be writing the first episode, and that creator David E. Kelley, Reese Witherspoon, and Nicole Kidman will reprise their roles as executive producers.

What's even better is that Big Little Lies season 3 will have source material, as Liane Moriarty has confirmed that she is writing a sequel to her beloved novel, taking place several years later, with the Monterey Five now the mothers of teenagers. With any luck, the next Big Little Lies installment will be just as pioneering as the hit premiere season.