Rivals Gets a 12-Episode Third Season, With Season 2 Heading for Its 2 December Finale
Rivals has been greenlit for a third season. A 12-episode Season 3 is going ahead, meaning the production has been formally approved, according to Deadline, which published the news on 11 November 2026.
The announcement came in an interview with David Tennant and writer and executive producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins. They talked through Episodes 7, 8 and 9 of Season 2 Part 2, the second half of the current run. Season 2 is set in 1987, and the finale is scheduled for 2 December.
Rivals is Hulu's television adaptation of Jilly Cooper's 1988 novel of the same name. The show follows a rivalry between two men in the television world, and its cast is built around that central pairing.
Tennant plays Tony, a TV executive. Claire Rushbrook plays Monica, Tony's wife. Aidan Turner plays Declan, Tony's rival, and Victoria Smurfit plays Maud, Declan's wife, who is an actress. Alex Hassell plays Rupert, described as Tony's enemy. Bella Maclean plays Taggie, and Nafessa Williams plays Cameron.
For viewers, the immediate timetable is clear. Season 2 has a fixed end date of 2 December, and Season 3 now has a confirmed episode count of 12. Anyone who has followed the series so far knows the next chapter is coming, even if the wait for it is not yet over.
Behind that count sits a lot of work. A season of 12 episodes needs writers, a director team, a full crew and a returning cast, all working on the same schedule. A renewal is the moment those jobs get locked in, and for the people making the show it is the point where planning turns into production.
The news also keeps the series in a familiar pattern for streaming dramas. A show finishes one run, its creators and cast discuss the episodes that have aired, and the next run is confirmed.
