My Brilliant Friend Season 3 Trailer: The Acclaimed Italian Drama Returns To HBO In February

Fans of the acclaimed Italian drama, "My Brilliant Friend," have to wait only a while longer, as season 3 of the HBO series is expected to drop as soon as February. The official trailer for "My Brilliant Friend" continues the saga of Lila (Gaia Girace) and Elena/Lenù (Margherita Mazzucco), focusing exclusively on their stories, as chronicled in novelist Elena Ferrante's "Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay," on which the third season is based. The latest season will most definitely also follow the telltale eight-episode model, widening its socio-cultural and coming-of-age themes. Watch the trailer for season 3 below.

Ferrante's novel is a deeply wonderful exploration of life and friendship, with a focus on Lila, who has her fair share of responsibilities at quite an early age, choosing to work in a factory under tough conditions over a life of comfort. Then there's Elena, who rejects a life of misery and submission to become a published author, which opens fresh avenues both wondrous and challenging (mostly challenging). The core focus of season 3 is Lila and Elena's romantic lives, with the presence of Nino (who was pretty horrid to Lila) acting as the source of conflict in several scenes.

The trailer touches upon Lila's hardships at the factory, where she undergoes harassment on a routine basis. This evidently goes to show that Lila is still fighting for survival, for bodily autonomy, and against the layered atrocities leveled at her. On the other hand, we see Elena struggling with dilemmas that are more internal in nature, such as her feelings about her core identity as a writer. There's, of course, a bourgeois tint to Elena's hardships, whereas Lila's are more essential from a survivalist point of view, as she is constantly fighting against wage inequality and sexual violence.

The beauty of "My Brilliant Friend," (and the reason why it has such an endearing spot in the hearts of the show's fans) is the collision of these two lives, worldviews, and personalities. Lila and Elena's friendship is honest and eye-opening in a way that's difficult to articulate, and both women are trying their best to carve a space for themselves amid a rapidly-changing 1970s Italy. Taking insight from the released trailer, it is apparent that director Daniele Luchetti has taken visual inspiration from U.S. indie cinema of the 1970s, especially the works of John Cassavetes.

According to Vulture, HBO executive Francesca Orsi praised the brilliance of the series and the reasons why audiences still care about the characters:

"The fact that viewers and critics alike have continued to embrace Elena and Lila's story makes it all the more gratifying, and we thank the entire team led by Saverio Costanzo for their outstanding work on the second season. We cannot wait to tell the next chapter of Elena and Lila's lives and friendship."

Apart from Girace and Mazzucco, "My Brilliant Friend" also stars Alba Rohrwacher, Alessandro Nardi, Anna Rita Vitolo, Luca Gallone, and Imma Villa.

Season 3 of "My Brilliant Friend" will be released on HBO on February 28, 2022.