'13 Reasons Why' Season 2 Theories You Need To See

Many viewers may have thought that Netflix's 13 Reasons Why had no more story to tell after its first season. It had worked through all the content from the Jay Asher book it was based on and Hannah's story was ostensibly over after the final tape. However, the series has been renewed for a Season 2, during which it's sure to explore all the cliffhangers still left hanging at the end of Season 1. These 13 Reasons Why Season 2 theories try to figure out how the show will continue now that the tapes are done.

According to showrunner Brian Yorkey, he knew as soon as Season 1 was over that there was more he wanted to explore with these characters. Though Hannah finished telling her own story in the first season, there were still a lot of things about the process of recovery and grief that Yorkey wanted to touch on in a second season. Hannah's suicide was something that everyone was still coming to terms with; their grieving wasn't over yet. Jessica and Hannah's rapist Bryce had yet to be brought to justice. Tyler seemed to be planning something dangerous with all of the guns in his room. And Alex's life was hanging in the balance after his suicide attempt.

Season 2 could provide new insight into existing characters and events that viewers have only seen from Hannah's perspective. A few theories about next season have emerged as particularly common amongst 13 Reasons Why fans.

Season 2 Will Deal With A School Shooting

After Tyler was shown stockpiling firearms, many viewers began to suspect that Season 2 would follow a school shooting. Reddit user tamara1781 theorized that each of Season 2's thirteen episodes would tell the story of a different victim of Tyler's shooting spree, with one episode focusing on him, the shooter. Instead of tapes, the framing device of the season would be the photographs Tyler took of the other characters. Twelve character deaths would be incredibly bleak even for a show as intense as this one, but while it might not unfold exactly like that, the idea of a school shooting still seems plausible.

Alex Becomes The Main Character

After Alex attempted suicide in the Season 1 finale, some fans began to wonder if Season 2 would make him the central character. If that was the case, it would explore what life was like for him after surviving his suicide attempt. "I think [Alex] is going to survive but in a heavily problematic way (vegetative state, speech problems, paralysis, something like that) in order to continue addressing suicide but from a new perspective..." said Reddit user BigRed160. It would tie into the themes of Season 1, but continue the story in a different way.

That seems especially possible because actor Miles Heizer touched on that topic during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. "That's another subject that's very rarely shown onscreen and is probably a lot more common than people think it is. People attempting to take their lives and it not happening, I'm sure that will bring a crazy set of issues," he said. "It would be interesting to go into that." That could be a hint that those issues are something Season 2 will explore.

The 'Sliding Doors' Theory

Some very hopeful fans have wondered if Season 2 might follow an alternate timeline: what would happen if Hannah got the help she needed and didn't commit suicide? Reddit User silkk8 said, "Jay Asher just so happened to release a 10th Anniversary version of the book where Hannah doesn't actually die at the end, which came out only a few months before the series did. So what if Season 1 is one reality where no one steps in to help Hannah and she dies, but Season 2 explores what could have happened if she got the help she needed and lived?"

While it would negate the message the first season was trying to convey, it's understandable that fans would want to imagine a scenario in which Hannah got a happy ending. It's not realistic considering the tone of the show, but it's hard not to wish for it.

Those are just three theories, but there are even more possibilities for 13 Reason Why's second season. The tapes might be finished, but there are still stories to tell.