In "Julia" season 2, Julia Child visits the French Riviera — and the White House kitchen

Things are heating up for our favorite chef, both on and off her feel-good cooking show, “The French Chef”

By Joy Saha

Staff Writer

Published October 24, 2023 4:05PM (EDT)

Sarah Lancashire in "Julia" (Photograph by Sebastein Gonon/Max)
Sarah Lancashire in "Julia" (Photograph by Sebastein Gonon/Max)

“Julia” — Max’s heartfelt show about the life of legendary chef Julia Child and the rise of her esteemed television series, “The French Chef” — is returning soon for a second season of joyful, culinary escapades.

As revealed in the season two trailer, which was released on Tuesday, following her major decision to renew the contract for her cooking show, Julia (Sarah Lancashire) heads off to the south of France, where she visits a slew of renowned restaurants and admirable chefs. Julia is accompanied by her devoted husband Paul (David Hyde Pierce), who, as we remember, encouraged her to “say ‘yes’ to everything for as long as we can” in the season one finale.

Back in the states, Julia’s cooking show and her own celebrity are both on the rise. But tension is also brewing behind-the-scenes. Alice (Brittany Bradford), who is now a full-time producer on “The French Chef,” struggles to revamp programming for the WGBH station. Judith (Fiona Glascott), Julia’s book editor, comes to a head with the male-dominated publishing industry of the 1960s. And Russ (Fran Kranz), Julia’s former producer on the show, is still against putting out feel-good content that appeals to the mainstream.

“Through her singular joie de vivre, [Julia] and her team must navigate WGBH, the White House and a threat from their past, while continuing to spearhead female-driven public television and confront social issues still prevalent today,” per a Max press release for the new season.

In addition to Lancashire, Pierce, Bradford, Glascott and Kranz, Bebe Neuwirth and Robert Joy will return to reprise their lead roles. The show also stars Isabella Rossellini as Simca and Judith Light as Blanche.

“Julia” will feature eight episodes in its second season. The show is slated to debut with three episodes on Nov. 16, followed by one episode weekly through Dec. 21.

Watch the trailer for season 2 of "Julia" below, via YouTube:


By Joy Saha

Joy Saha is a staff writer at Salon. She writes about food news and trends and their intersection with culture. She holds a BA in journalism from the University of Maryland, College Park.

MORE FROM Joy Saha


Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Clip David Hyde Pierce Food Julia Julia Child Max Sarah Lancashire The French Chef Trailer