Picture: Netflix
Although there was a time when the Rob Lowe comedy looked like it may have its future in doubt, Netflix has officially renewed Unstable for a season 2, which is now completed production. Here’s everything we know about the next season, including the new casting announcements, how long the show was in production, and when we can expect it to drop onto Netflix.
Releasing on Netflix back in March 2023, Unstable is the Netflix Original comedy series created by father-son pair Rob Lowe and John Owen Lowe alongside Victor Fresco and Marc Buckland.
The eight-episode first season followed a biotech genius who is trying to bounce back following the death of his wife. Meanwhile, his son is trying to save the family business.
Let’s now dig into everything known about season 2 of Unstable:
When was Unstable renewed for a season 2?
A renewal was first reported by Deadline for Unstable in early May 2023 when it revealed that production had begun as of early March. However, their report cast some doubt that the show would be coming back as it was one of the early Netflix shows severely impacted by the WGA strike, which began on May 1st.
Back then, their report stated that the series hadn’t received a full greenlight but was prepping at Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood with six of the eight scripts for the eight planned episodes already complete.
Both Hollywood strikes ended in early November 2023, and we’ve now begun hearing about what shows and movies are starting production soon, including a return for Unstable.
The plan was for production to start for the second season in Los Angeles on or around November 20th and continue through to the New Year, which will be wrapped up sometime in late January 2024.
Netflix officially confirmed the renewal on November 16th, stating that Rob and John would return for the second season, consisting of eight episodes.
In addition, they announced that showrunning duties would be handled by Andrew Gurland, best known for his work on Married and Platonic.
In an exclusive self-dealt quote to Netflix’s own TUDUM, the two Lowes said:
“It’s a dream come true for us to jump back into the world of Unstable. Here’s to season two and the many hours of family therapy that we will need along the way.”
Rob Lowe and John Owen Lowe announce S2 of Unstable. Cr. Netflix/2023
How well did Unstable perform on Netflix?
Unstable made it into the top ten lists of 45 countries worldwide. However, in the first five days, which includes the entire weekend, Unstable has only been able to amass 11.36 million viewing hours. In week 2, the show fell out of the global top 10s entirely.
In our top 10 report for the week ending April 2nd, 2023, when you convert the viewership to CVE, it didn’t paint a strong case for renewal lagging behind the likes of That 90s Show significantly.
As we’ve covered on this site, with a few exceptions, many comedy series from Netflix struggle to get beyond a first season, particularly star-driven ones. God’s Favorite Idiot, The Pentaverate, Living With Yourself, Hard Cell, and countless more all find themselves waiting for new season announcements, but they’ll likely never come.
New and Returning Cast Members for Unstable Season
Pictures: Netflix / Ari Michelson
In December 2023, Netflix confirmed two new cast members for the new season:
- Iris Apatow (pictured left), with credits in The Bubble, Vodka, and Young Werther, will also join as a recurring guest star, taking on the role of Georgia. Georgia is the bold and irreverent former stepdaughter of Anna, played by Sian Clifford. Finding herself as an unenthusiastic intern at Dragon, Georgia navigates office life by causing chaos and deliberately making Anna’s life more challenging.
- Lamorne Morris (pictured right), known for his roles in Fargo and Woke, will appear as a recurring guest star as Peter. This character is the charismatic founder of a biotech start-up, whose quickly rising prominence intensifies the already fierce rivalry between characters Ellis, portrayed by Rob Lowe, and Jackson, played by John Owen Lowe. We can also report that this role was initially offered to Eric Andre.
Set to return for the second season is Fred Armisen, who will continue to play Leslie. Rachel Marsh is also confirmed back for season 2, playing the role of Luna.
Where is Unstable Season 2 in production?
Filming got underway on Unstable season 2 on November 20th with it currently set to wrap on January 26th, 2024. The budget for season 2 is reportedly set to be somewhere between $1 and $2 million an episode.
Johnny Lowe posted on Instagram that filming had begun with a first look behind the scenes with the caption: “Jackson Dragon is back.”
Filming is underway on #Unstable season 2! pic.twitter.com/BQEJrrnQKm
— What's on Netflix (@whatonnetflix) November 26, 2023
Filming then took place over the next few months with numerous updates in between via social media.
On January 9th, 2024 – Rob Lowe posted that they were then completing the last table read of the season with a picture of the entire writing staff and much of the cast.
Then on January 28th, John Owen Low posted on Instagram in a reel that the show had wrapped filming.
When will Season 2 of Unstable be released on Netflix?
No confirmation of any release date or window yet.
Given that the production will have wrapped by the end of January 2024, however, we’re predicting the show will be returning at some point between the middle and end of 2024.
What to Expect from Season 2 of Unstable
There are some key moments in the finale of the first season that set up some plot threads for season 2:
- In the aftermath of Jean’s deception and her attempt to remove Ellis from the board, she was given her marching orders by Ellis and was fired. However, clearly affected by her plot, Ellis sets Jean’s car on fire, in an unhinged and manic display of revenge.
- Ellis taking out his revenge on Jean’s car could result in a nasty court case, and may even galvanize Jean further in her attempt to have him removed from his own company. She has allies on the board that may leave the back door open to her returning to the company if Ellis is ousted.
- Ellis clearly needs help from a mental health professional as taking revenge on a person by setting their car on fire is not healthy. We’d expect to see more than a few visits to the shrink in order to help Ellis.
Picture: Ellis (Rob Lowe) definitely needs to visit a shrink in season 2 – Garfield Grove / LoweProfile
- Initially, Jackson had a thing for Ruby, but despite going out on a date, any romance between the pair quickly fizzled out. However, this has led to Jackson finding romance with Ruby’s best friend Luna, after sharing a kiss.
- We’d expect to see the romance between Jackson and Luna blossom in the second season, and how that will impact her friendship with Ruby.
- Jackson is also in an extremely vulnerable place right now thanks to Jean’s deception, as he may feel like Jean was just using him in order to enact her plan against his father.
- With his father still reeling from the death of his mother, and the aftermath of Jean’s attempt at a coup, Jackson will have a lot on his plate as he tried to juggle his budding relationship with Luna, his career, and dealing with his dad.
Is there still a music career in the future for Jackson? (John Owen Lowe) – Garfield Grove/Lowe Profile
Are you looking forward to a second season of Unstable on Netflix? Let us know in the comments.
Netflix Synopsis: "He's an eccentric biotech genius. His son's a pragmatist living in his shadow. To save the family business, they'll have to work through some issues."
