How Cruel Summer's Ending Changes Everything For Season 2

Sure, there’s the small matter of the fact that the audience knows Jeanette was actually guilty – if not precisely in the way Kate originally thought. And if Cruel Summer Season 2 continues the story of Season 1, that’s certainly the biggest issue left for the show to deal with. But what would true justice for Kate look like? Outing Jeanette as the monster she so clearly is? Tearing down her new public persona as a big-hearted victim? Simply learning the truth?

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There are slightly happier threads we could follow in Season 2 as well, from Kate and Mallory’s blossoming romance, to what exactly happened to Jeanette’s mom Cindy after she essentially abandoned her family (and turned out to be right about her daughter in the end). Is that enough to build an entire season around, though? We may well find out.

Will Cruel Summer Season 2 Focus on a Different Main Character?

But Cruel Summer Season 2 could also follow a slightly different, if still somewhat connected, path. Another crime could take place in Skylin – though the odds of two similarly shocking events occurring in such a small town might stretch viewers’ abilities to suspend their disbelief. It’s more likely that the show would simply shift its focus somewhat and follow a story about a character who was only tangentially connected to the Kate and Jeanette saga.

Sweet nerd Vincent – former BFF of both Jeanette and Mallory – seems an obvious pick, as his on-again-off-again relationship with football star Ben is the sort of story that might rock a small Texas town in ways that don’t necessarily involve national media coverage. (And, let’s not forget, Vince was pretty aware of exactly the sort of person Jeanette was, which could somehow tie his story back to the first season’s primary plot.)

Could Cruel Summer Season 2 Kick Off an Anthology Series?

But since Cruel SummerSeason 1 wrapped up so neatly, there’s every chance that the show could look very different when it returns. As an anthology series, the show could keep its trademark split timeline format while following a mystery involving an entirely new set of characters in a new location. (And possibly in a new time period, though I would be personally loath to lose the series’ fantastic 1990s soundtrack.)

Shows like American Horror Story and Fargo have already proven this sort of format is sustainable long term and it would allow us to leave the characters of Skylin in a state of relative peace. And as much as fans would miss the powerhouse performances of Holt and Aurelia, it would also allow the series to introduce a new pair of talented leads at its center. (While, naturally, leaving the door open for the original stars to return if the story required it.)