Essex College’s favorite roommates are back and ready to take on sophomore year as Max’s The Sex Lives of College Girls returns for its highly anticipated third season!

The world fell in love with Bela (Amrit Kaur), Kimberly (Pauline Chalamet), Whitney (Alyah Chanelle Scott) and Leighton (Reneé Rapp) when Mindy Kaling and Justin Noble’s show first hit the streamer in 2021.

Now, as its third installment approaches, the name of the game is growth as the foursome looks to navigate their second year of college.

“It stems from a little bit of my own experiences in college. I was definitely one of those kids who took on way too much, and it was like, I want to join a comedy group. Then I would come home and be like, I joined four comedy groups, and it’s like I no longer have time for classes,” Noble, who is showrunner, told Blavity’s Shadow and Act when asked about the inspiration behind showcasing growth across each character’s trajectory in this new season.

“But, I think it comes from the research we do for the show,” he added. “I love talking to current college students. I’m 40 years old, and I can’t unilaterally decide what should happen on this show about college in 2024. We have some very young writers. They are exceptionally helpful, but I love talking to current college kids who can be like, this is an issue on our campus that we’re struggling with, and anxiety is huge on that list.”

He continued, “They feel so much pressure about what’s ahead of them and take things on. They’re at that stage, particularly in sophomore year, where you need to say, okay, it’s time to step up my game. I have one year behind me. I need to figure out what I’m doing, where I’m going, and what’s the next step. How do I get there? And I think that’s a lot of unfair pressure for someone so young and trying to figure out what they are in life. We were ready to tell a story about that with Whitney this season, but then it also blends into stories for our other characters, like Kimberly, who thinks she knows exactly what she wants to do with her life. Sometimes, we need experiences that make us sit back and question, “Is that what I want? Would I be my happiest self? I’m not sure.”

What’s next for the girls?

While the second season left fans on a cliffhanger regarding Kimberly and Whitney’s friendship, things pick up with the young ladies moving back into their respective dorms in Essex. But are they able to salvage their friendship?

Chalamet said those watching can learn the lesson of letting go of the need to be perfect after watching Kimberly in the new season of The Sex Lives of College Girls. She said another theme explored is the importance of recognizing when you’re wrong.

“Always shoot for the moon,” Chalamet told Blavity. “Whatever you want, go after it, and you will make mistakes. And when you make mistakes, acknowledge that you made mistakes and rectify them.”

“She’s very stubborn, so that’s tough to watch,” Scott said of her character Whitney.

“I think that she’s coming into her racial identity this season and the last season as well, and I think that has made me have a lot of empathy for the vastness of the experience of what it is to be a Black woman and how different it is for every person,” she told Blavity. “Her background and upbringing have led her to a certain place where she’s not fully aware and accepting of who she is yet, and that it’s always a journey, and it’s always a good reminder that it will always play a role in anything we do.”

Is Bela still the thirstiest character on television?

Noble jokes that no character on television is topping Bela’s need for attention. However, her thirst looks slightly different in this third season.

“For freshman year Bela, she has freedom, and she will do whatever she wants, no s***s given,” Kaur said of her character. “Sophomore year, she’s realized there’s consequences for her actions.”

“One of Bela’s downfalls is her misogyny,” she told Blavity. “And I’ve said this a number of times, but I still think that’s true, so I’m just going to keep saying it. In Season 2, Season 1, there are a lot of women she steps on to get where she wants, whether sleeping with other people’s boyfriends or not including them in the magazine. In Season 3, she, again, is here in the situation. She knows she wants to be a better person on paper, but she doesn’t actively do that.”

The 10-episode third season of The Sex Lives of College Girls returned this Thursday, with episodes airing weekly at 9 p.m. ET through Jan. 23 on Max.

Pauline Chalamet

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