'The Afterparty' Season 2 Revisits the Rom-Com, But Episodes Also Tackle '90s Erotic Thriller and 'Twee Indie Film' Styles

The Afterparty Season 1 wasn't just a whodunnit centering on a murder at a high school reunion, but it also had a romantic story at the center with Aniq (Sam Richardson) reconnecting with his longtime crush Zoë (Zoë Chao), so when the producers were looking at how to bring it back for a second season, those two had to be at the center of it because they are "the emotional heart of the series," creator and executive producer Chris Miller said during a Television Critics Association press tour panel for the series.

This, of course, means that as each episode tells its story in a different genre, there has to be another rom-com one because Aniq's storyline for the season lent itself to a farcical sequel. However, Zoë's point-of-view episode will not be animated this year.

Instead, Season 2 features episodes in the style of Jane Austen, film noirs, "twee indie" films, heists, and '90s erotic thrillers, Miller said.

"It all comes out of the characters and what their point of view is and how they see the world," he reminded the critics in attendance.

Aniq was integral in finding the killer in the first season, and it appears he will be again in Season 2, as he and Zoë stumble upon a murder when they are at a family wedding. The groom is the one killed, and that means every guest is a suspect. Also returning from Season 1 is Tiffany Haddish as Detective Danner, who isn't invited to the wedding initially but gets brought to the location when Aniq calls her to tell her what he has gotten mixed up in.

As great as Chao and Richardson both are, Miller did acknowledge that regular characters continuing to find themselves in the middle of murders gets more and more suspicious over time, so if the show gets renewed for a third season, they will have to look at centering other characters, even if theirs have been the heart of the series so far.

The Afterparty Season 2 will launch with its first two episodes April 28 on Apple TV+ and then stream one new episode every Friday up to and including the finale on June 23. Season 1 has a Metascore of 72; the review embargo on Season 2 has not yet lifted.