Can’t get enough ‘Westworld?’ Good, because it is coming back for ANOTHER season, thanks to HBO’s recent announcement that they picked up the cult-favorite show for a 3rd season following the promising returns they are seeing following the first 2 episodes of the 2nd season. While true that ratings may not be as high as the first season (though the dip is only marginal), fans have had to wait over a year and a half for the show’s return, which is a long time for casual viewers. And even with that dip, the premiere itself still garnered over 2.1 million viewers during its 9 pm time-slot, which is not bad at all for a cable series, and still does not include viewership online and delayed viewers. And of course, with the Emmy love the show got from the first season (over 20 nominations and 5 wins), it should really come as no surprise to see a quality show like ‘Westworld’ continue under HBO, which tends to cultivate solid shows like this.

In the worlds of the President of HBO Programming, Casey Bloys:

“It’s been an extraordinary pleasure to work with the exceptionally talented Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, as well as their gifted cast and crew. From the inspired storytelling to the incredible visuals, we are so excited to see where the next chapter will take us.”

Of course, a big question is WHEN exactly that 3rd season will happen, especially after the extended wait between the end of the 1st season and the recent 2nd season premiere. Luckily for us, Executive Producer and showrunner Jonathan Nolan recently spoke on that topic while speaking with EW:

“It’s an ongoing conversation with our friends at HBO. With a show of this scope and scale, we’re not interested in doing the compromised version. We want the show to get bigger and bigger and more ambitious, and this takes time. We want to take all the time we need to get it right.”

I agree that they should take the time to get the series the way they want it, but there does need to be a balance. This is television after all, and they do not want to lose too many viewers. The cap really should be a year and a half between seasons. That is about as long as I think most US audiences are willing to wait before they lose interest. But I could be wrong about that as all it takes is one quality show to push the limit and prove American audiences are willing to wait as long as needed as long as the end result is a quality product worth the time spent in between seasons. Maybe ‘Westworld’ will be the one to break that mold.