Haunted Hotel: Season 2. (L-R) Jimmi Simpson as Abaddon and Natalie Palamides as Esther in Haunted Hotel: Season 2. Cr. NETFLIX © 2026
Haunted Hotel season 2 has only been on Netflix for a week, but creator and showrunner Matt Roller has already given fans plenty of reasons to feel optimistic about a third stay at the Undervale.
Speaking to Sonny Bunch on The Bulwark Goes to Hollywood podcast, Roller talked about the show’s future, how his team pulled off a one-year turnaround between seasons, and what he has planned if Netflix comes calling again. Here’s everything he said about season 3.
In case you missed it, Haunted Hotel season 2 arrived on October 9th, 2026, with eight new episodes, just in time for spooky season.
Has Netflix renewed Haunted Hotel for season 3?
Official Netflix Renewal Status: Pending (Last Updated: 10/16/2026)
Not yet. As of writing, Netflix hasn’t announced a decision on season 3, and Roller was candid that he’s in the dark as much as anyone.
I feel good about it. I don’t have currently more information than anyone else.
That isn’t cause for alarm. Season 1 got its renewal a week after it debuted back in September 2025, but Netflix doesn’t work to a fixed timetable, and decisions for animated shows can take longer, and when we do get full renewals, we can be waiting years for a return (looking at you, Blue Eye Samurai).
Roller explained that the streamer usually wants to see how a season performs before committing to another, which creates a bottleneck for animated shows in particular:
In the Netflix model… you don’t get the next season until they see the numbers on the prior season, which means there’s always a point where all the work stops and you don’t get to backload episodes that can then be dropped on an annual cycle.
While season 1 did get into the weekly top 10s (an achievement in itself for animated adult shows nowadays), the same has not happened for season 2, suggesting it picked up less than 1.8M views in its opening week. We’ll see how it does in week 2. It has featured in the daily top 10s of 36 countries, down from 59 for season 1. Reviews remain incredibly strong for the season, with our own Rafael Motamayor writing that season 2 builds on season 1 with more frights, laughs, and a lot of heart.
We reached out to Netflix about the status of the show earlier this week who had no updates to share.
Season 3 is already written, and it’ll be longer
The biggest news to come out of the interview is that the scripts for season 3 are done. Roller was careful to point out that this doesn’t guarantee a renewal, but he confirmed the writers’ room has completed the season.
Yeah, we have it all. And I’m very excited about it. I would love to make it because I think it’s very strong and just builds on season two in a way that I think season two built on season one. So yeah, we’re ready to hit the ground running once we hear.
Roller also revealed that plans are in place for season 3 to run 10 episodes, up from season 2’s eight. That would put it back in line with season 1, which also had 10 episodes. Combined with the two seasons already on Netflix, that would take the series to 28 episodes.
Haunted Hotel: Season 2. (L-R) Natalie Palamides as Esther, Eliza Coupe as Katherine, and Natalie Morales as Shayna in Haunted Hotel: Season 2. Cr. NETFLIX © 2026
When could Haunted Hotel season 3 be on Netflix?
If Netflix renews the show, Roller is aiming to have season 3 out before Halloween 2027. Keeping the show on an annual spooky-season cycle is clearly a priority for him.
In the event of a renewal, season three will be before Halloween 2027. It’s important to me that we kind of hit that spooky season cycle.
He added that while the show wasn’t conceived as a Halloween show, it “lives in the energy of the season,” and he doesn’t want it dropping in May.
Roller explained that an animated season typically takes around 18 months to make, which clashes with Netflix’s habit of renewing only after a season is out. Shows like The Simpsons get around this by being ordered several seasons at a time, so work never stops.
After seeing how season 1 was tracking internally, the team wrote episodes before season 1 even premiered, giving them a head start once season 2 was officially ordered. Instead of three rounds of storyboards at four weeks each, the team does two rounds at three weeks each, saving five or six weeks. Rather than waiting for the cast to record a full audio version of each episode before boarding, Roller and the editors record scratch versions of every part themselves and board from that.
Roller was clear that the first of those was the key to making a yearly release possible:
We wrote some episodes, actually, before season one came out… And that gave us enough lead time to launch into production with those episodes once season two got officially picked up. I think without that, it would not be possible to do a one-year turnaround.
Roller said these were refined during season 2 and would be honed “even more” for season 3. With the scripts already finished, the show is in a far stronger position than most animated series waiting on a renewal.
For reference, here’s how the release schedule has looked so far:
| Season | Episodes | Netflix release date |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 10 | September 19th, 2025 |
| Season 2 | 8 | October 9th, 2026 |
| Season 3 | 10 (planned) | Before Halloween 2027 (if renewed) |
What to expect from Haunted Hotel season 3
Roller kept specifics under wraps, but he did share a few clues about the direction of a third season.
More original horror concepts. Season 1 tackled the obvious horror staples, such as a possession episode and a slasher episode. Season 2 dug into deeper cuts, like the gun-toting supernatural hunter Dante Crowe. Roller says the well of broad concepts is running dry, and he isn’t interested in straight homage or parody. Instead, season 3 leans on a world that now feels far more lived-in:
Our world is more lived in and real to us. And there are way more things that I think we can do in the world. And season three, it’s actually — I can’t say any of that, but we have some very cool concept episodes that will feel like horror, but are completely original to our world.
That approach already paid off in season 2’s “Ghost Day Out,” which Roller calls the show’s strongest episode yet. It didn’t start from any horror reference at all.
Season 2 pivoted toward the emotional lives of the ghosts, especially Nathan (Will Forte), and Stabby Paul got a tragic backstory. Roller says season 3 pushes that further:
I think we’re painting a richer version of our characters, and even more so season three.
Don’t expect the show to suddenly turn into a lore-heavy, serialized story, though. Roller wants every episode to stand on its own, a choice that has surprised some younger fans used to serialized animation:
I wanted to make a show where if there was a good episode, you could tell your friend to watch that episode, and everything they need to understand the episode is in the episode.
Haunted Hotel: Season 2. Jimmi Simpson as Abaddon in Haunted Hotel: Season 2. Cr. NETFLIX © 2026
He also says he has “the gist of things I would want to do for another 20 episodes,” which bodes well beyond season 3, though he admitted the start of every season still begins with “oh God, what are we going to do this season?”
How you can help Haunted Hotel get a season 3
As Roller said ahead of season 2, “If people watch, we will get to make more.” This time, he got specific about what Netflix pays attention to:
- Watch it now. Netflix puts heavy weight on a show’s first two weeks of viewing, so if you’ve been meaning to check in, now’s the time.
- Finish the season, and rewatch it. Completion rate matters, and Roller noted that season 1 earned Netflix’s “highly rewatched” banner.
- Give it two thumbs up. Roller explained that the double thumbs up is one of Netflix’s key signals, and that a single thumbs up is likely read as “good, but not incredible.”
Roller’s closing message to fans was simple:
If you’re at all interested in the show, watch it now because Netflix really values those first two weeks of viewership. Watch it whenever you want, but throw it on now.
We’ll update this article as soon as Netflix makes a decision. Are you hoping to check back into the Undervale for season 3? Let us know in the comments below!
