Netflix’s breakout romantic comedy-drama Nobody Wants This is officially returning for its second season on October 23, with Kristen Bell and Adam Brody reprising their lead roles.
The first season, which premiered in 2024, followed the unlikely romance between Joanne, an outspoken agnostic podcaster (Bell), and Noah, a devoted rabbi (Brody). Despite their ideological differences and family pressures, the pair fell in love, a story loosely inspired by creator Erin Foster’s own life.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Foster explained how casting Brody opposite Bell was a pivotal decision. “As soon as Kristen got cast, she felt really strongly that it should be Adam, but we wanted to audition and see what our options were because we kind of had the pick of the litter,” she said. “We auditioned every Jewish guy in, not even America [but also] from here to Zimbabwe, and none of them felt right. There’s something about the character where he needs to be funny, but he can’t have darkness… He has warmth, and we really didn’t find that combination. So, eventually she was like, ‘I said it should be Adam.’ She was right.”
With the show’s second season now underway, Foster shared that ensuring Noah and Joanne’s romance feels authentic remains her priority. “That was top of mind for me because we watch a lot of rom-coms where you really just can’t picture these two people actually liking each other,” she noted. “Sometimes we get really carried away with formulas of opposites attract, and we take it to such an extreme that you go, ‘These people really would not be able to make it work.’ So I couldn’t make Joanne that wild and crazy, and I couldn’t make Noah too conservative, because they really wouldn’t have anything in common.”
Season 2 of Nobody Wants This sees Bruce Eric Kaplan and Jenni Konner join as showrunners, while Justine Lupe and Timothy Simons return as series regulars. Jackie Tohn, previously recurring, has also been promoted to regular. New guest stars include Leighton Meester (Brody’s real-life spouse) as Abby, Joanne’s former school rival turned influencer, along with Miles Fowler, Alex Karpovsky, and Arian Moayed in key roles.
Nobody Wants This is produced by 20th Television in association with Steven Levitan Productions, with executive producers including Foster, Sara Foster, Levitan, Bell, Kaplan, Konner, and others.