Everything We Know About 'Winning Time' Season 2

HBO's hit basketball drama has already been renewed for a second season. But how far into Lakers history will it go?

winning time hbo
HBO
HBO

When Winning Time debuted back in March, it was already clear that HBO's chronicle of the "Showtime" Los Angeles Lakers had a big story to tell. The first episode, directed by executive producer Adam McKay (Don't Look Up, Anchorman), opened with Magic Johnson (Quincy Isaiah) finding out that he contracted HIV in 1991 and then flashed all the way back to the '80s before Magic even signed with the team. That's a lot of time to cover—would the show even get the chance to arrive at that point in the future?

Now that the first season is wrapped up, it looks like Winning Time will have plenty of time to explore basketball history. (And plenty of time to irritate the actual figures it's based on!) A ratings success for HBO, the show was quickly renewed for a second season and, with its flashy cast of recognizable faces and newcomers, it will likely generate some awards attention, too. Here's everything you need to know about Winning Time's ongoing path to controversy and victory.

winning time
HBO

Will there be a Season 2 of Winning Time?

Yes, Winning Time was renewed by HBO for a second season back in April 2021, after the first five episodes aired. Given the ratings and the press the show generated, it wasn't a big surprise.

“It’s been a thrill to bring Winning Time to life with Adam McKay, Max Borenstein, our phenomenal producing team, and this incredible cast,” Francesca Orsi, executive vice president of HBO Programming, said in a statement at the time of the renewal. “This series not only tells the riveting story of the Lakers’ rise, but is also a look back at a transformative era in basketball, celebrity, and the city of Los Angeles. We can’t wait to see how this team will tell the next chapter of this dynasty.”

When will Winning Time Season 2 be released?

There's no official release date for Winning Time Season 2. But the relative speed of the renewal indicates that Winning Time will hopefully return pretty soon. A March 2023 release would keep the show on a tight schedule. However, HBO shows, particularly ones with big casts like Westworld or McKay's other hit Succession, can take a little longer to come back between seasons.

Is there a trailer for Winning Time Season 2?

Nope. Since Winning Time just wrapped Season 1 and production hasn't started on Season 2, it will be a while before we see a trailer. For now, you'll have to make your own trailer with Lakers highlights on YouTube.

gaby hoffman in winning time
HBO

Who in the cast is returning for Winning Time Season 2?

Given how important certain key figures are to the real story, most of the Winning Time cast will be returning for Season 2. That means John C. Reilly, who plays team owner Jerry Buss, will be once again putting on those aviator sunglasses and flashy suits. Expect to see more of Quincy Isaiah (Magic Johnson), Jason Clarke (Jerry West), Gaby Hoffman (Claire Rothman), Solomon Hughes (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar), and Adrian Brody (Pat Riley) as well. Expect to see more of Michael Chiklis's Red Auerbach, the coach of the villainous Boston Celtics, too. As even the most casual basketball fan can tell you, that rivalry only deepens with time.

There will be some figures from Season 1 you won't see much of in the future season. Jerry Buss's mother, Jesse, died at the end of Season 1, so Sally Field will most likely not appear in Season 2. Tracy Letts, who played Coach Jack McKinney, will also be more of a one-season character. The same will likely be true of actor Wood Harris, who played troubled Laker Spencer Haywood, because his character did not continue on with the team. Similarly, there will inevitably be new cast members brought in to play new players who join the team.  

john c reilly winning time
HBO

What will Winning Time Season 2 be about?

Though some of the real-life figures portrayed on the show may disagree, Winning Time can only deviate from the historical record so much. The first season ended with the Lakers winning the national title in 1980, setting the stage for the dynasty years to come. Like Netflix's The Crown, it has certain events that viewers will expect the show to hit as it marches forward through the period outlined in the book its based on, Jeff Pearlman's Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty of the 1980s. If you want to find "spoilers," read the book! 

In an in-depth interview with Deadline, co-creator Max Borenstien spoke at length about his potential plans for the future of the show, indicating that the writers won't be making any significant time jumps to speed up the story. "This next season is going to be, you know, taking the same pace that this first season did, roughly, to tell the next piece of the story," he said when asked about Season 2. "Which involves Paul Westhead and Pat Riley, and a struggle Magic has that next year, and Jerry West’s next step in the direction of becoming the general manager. There’s a lot of transitional stuff that starts to happen in that next season."

It's an ambitious plan. In a recent interview with New York Magazine, John C. Reilly talked about the future of the show in more ambivalent terms. "I’ve never played a character for this long in a movie or play, and it took a certain amount of emotional stamina to hold on to Jerry for ten episodes," he said. "It’s above my pay scale whether HBO wants to get into the Shaq and Kobe era, but I’m only obligated to do another season of the show, and I haven’t even thought about whether I would want to keep doing it beyond that."

Could Winning Time continue for six or seven seasons? It's certainly possible—though a show like this can get more expensive and complicated to shoot as they go on. Ask any fan of Game of Thrones. The narrative of the Lakers is almost as complex as George R.R. Martin's fantasy epic. But at least there's an ending that's already been written.

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