Tell Me Lies Showrunner Explained The Decision To End The Series

Just hours before the final episode of Tell Me Lies Season 3 was set to come out on Feb. 17, showrunner Meaghan Oppenheimer dropped a big announcement. She confirmed the series is officially ending after three seasons, making the Season 3 finale the show’s conclusion. Posting the update on Instagram late on Feb. 16, Oppenheimer explained her “bittersweet” decision to fans.

Why Tell Me Lies Ends With Season 3

Oppenheimer brought Tell Me Lies to screens in 2022, adapting Carola Lovering’s 2018 novel of the same name. Like its source material, the series centers on the twisted, toxic relationship between Lucy (Grace Van Patten) and Stephen (Jackson White), who meet as college students and remain entangled for years. The writing team knew where they wanted to end up when they started on the series, according to Oppenheimer’s Instagram post, and they got there at the end of Season 3.

“After three amazing seasons of Tell Me Lies, tonight’s episode will be the series finale,” she wrote. “This was always the ending my writing team and I had in mind, and we are insanely proud of it.”

Because fans’ response to the season was so “incredible,” she added, they considered whether they could find “another organic way to continue the story.” However, when all was said and done, they decided they’d reached their story’s “natural conclusion.”

“My main goal has always been to protect the quality of the show and give you the best experience I can give you,” Oppenheimer wrote. “And so, while it is bittersweet to leave something that has been such a happy experience, I am very grateful that we are able to tell a complete story with an intentional ending - a privilege very few shows get.”

To conclude, Oppenheimer thanked fans for “loving our show” and looked forward to bringing them more stories “in the near future.”

Saying Goodbye

Oppenheimer previously spoke to Bustle in 2022 about how the series would end, and she teased that she’d keep some of the book’s “major plot points” for the finale because they were so “iconic.” Though she’d planning for the end for years, some fans weren’t as prepared. The comments on her Instagram announcement included some shock, sadness, and even anger.

“The fact that this was dropped on us at 9 pm is giving Stephen DeMarco level toxic,” one fan wrote.

“You could have atleast [sic] made some more episodes this season instead of 8,” commented another, adding a crying emoji and a broken heart.

For those fans in distress, there’s hope. After watching the finale, one viewer wrote in the comments that they “still have a lot of questions” and “can see a possibility” for spinoffs.

Speaking to TheWrap on Feb. 17, Oppenheimer herself said spinoffs are “definitely” a possibility. “The theme of obsessive, toxic, or just generally unhealthy romance and friendships at this stage in life is a very timeless, universal theme, and so there are a lot of ways to continue exploring that,” she said.