- Filming is underway on Fallout season 2, according to two of its primary actors
- On social media, Walton Goggins and Ella Purnell all but confirmed the cameras are finally rolling on season 2
- It’s unclear when the hugely successful Prime Video series will return to our screens
It’s time to return to the wasteland – well, for the stars of Amazon‘s TV adaptation of Fallout, anyway, because filming on the hit show’s second season is officially underway.
Taking to Instagram yesterday (December 3), Walton Goggins, who plays The Ghoul/Cooper Howard, confirmed he was back in the metaphorical saddle to start shooting Fallout season 2. Indeed, Goggins posted an image of himself as his Ghoul prosthetics were being applied by one of the series’ many makeup artists, which confirms principal photography has begun.
Goggins’ post comes hot on the heels of social media posts from one of his Fallout TV show co-stars in Ella Purnell. Taking to Bluesky two days earlier, Purnell, who plays Lucy MacLean, posted an image from a plane as it flew over an unknown desert location. 24 hours later, Purnell posted a follow-up message on Bluesky to say “the wasteland is calling see you soon” before signing off with “#fallouts2 #falloutnewvegas”.
We already had an inkling that the hugely popular Prime Video show’s sophomore season would start filming before the end of 2024. In October, Leslie Uggams, who plays Betty Pearson, told ScreenRant that principal photography would begin in November. However, with Purnell and Goggins confirming their filming schedules have begun, this is the clearest indication we’ve seen yet that one of the best Prime Video shows‘ next chapter is in full production.
Full spoilers follow for Fallout season 1, so proceed at your own risk!
In the final episode of Fallout‘s first season, Lucy and The Ghoul joined forces to pursue Lucy’s dad Hank (Kyle MacLachlan), who was revealed to be an employee of Vault-Tec, the nefarious megacorporation who played a big role in nuclear weapon-fuelled cataclysm known as The Great War. Hank is also responsible for the destruction of Shady Sands decades after The Great War, too, which turned his wife and Lucy’s mom into an irradiated feral ghoul – a heart-breaking finale scene that was reshot because “it didn’t feel right”, according to Purnell.
With Goggins and Purnell starting work on Fallout season 2, then, the series’ next installment will see their characters continue their search for Hank. With the latter seen heading to iconic Fallout location New Vegas in season 1’s mid-credits scene, we can expect Fallout: New Vegas, one of the many games set in Bethesda’s long-running and iconic videogame franchise, to inspire the show’s next chapter.
Does Fallout season 2 have a release date yet?
Unsurprisingly, no – and it’s going to be a while before it’s released on Prime Video, aka one of the world’s best streaming services.
Filming on the series’ first season began in July 2022 and, according to Goggins, production wrapped in March 2023, so it took eight months to shoot from start to finish. If season 2 requires a similarly long shooting schedule, principal photography isn’t likely to wrap until August 2025. With season 1’s post-production phase requiring a year’s worth of work, too, I’d be surprised if Fallout‘s sophomore chapter launches on Amazon’s primary streamer before mid-2026.
Still, at least there’s been some movement on the filming front. After all, it was only two months ago – in early October – that Purnell admitted “I don’t have a script, I have literally nothing” for Fallout season 2. That revelation came six months after Amazon MGM Studios renewed Fallout for a second season, so fans (myself included) were starting to wonder what was holding it up. In all likelihood, showrunners Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dworet were still working on this season’s scripts, while the likes of director-producer Jonathan Nolan, in conjunction with the show’s massive crew, worked out where they’d film season 2 alongside other production logistics.
Anyway, while we wait for season 2 to emerge from its vault, read my review of Fallout season 1 to see what I thought of it. Alternatively, check out some of my exclusive interviews with Nolan, the show’s cast, and Bethesda chief Todd Howard about season 1.