Jane’s New Love Interest, Corey, Has 'Big Little Lies' Fans Feeling Some Type of Way
[Warning: This article contains spoiler-y info about season two, episode three of Big Little Lies.]
Another episode of Big Little Lies is in the books, and season two’s third week proves that Monterey is forever full of surprises. Some are good, some are bad and some just leave you wondering how in the hell you feel. This week’s conundrum (well, one of them — this is Big Little Lies, after all): BLL fans are confused about Jane’s new love interest, Corey. Gone is last season’s potential beau, the seemingly unproblematic Coffee Shop Tom. Season three has swapped espresso beans for aquarium things by introducing Jane’s current co-worker and maybe-boyfriend Corey. But, let it be said, the internet has thoughts.
While last season seemingly ended with the possibility that Coffee Shop Tom (Joseph Cross) would stick around, Jane wiped the slate clean coming into this season. She works at the Monterey aquarium, where she trades flirty glances and awkward chatter with Corey (Douglas Smith). Jane’s internal alarm bells looked as though they were starting to sound when he referred to her and her friends as the Monterey Five, but Corey managed to come back from that blip — enough to score a date in tonight’s episode.
Was Corey grilling the waitress at the restaurant over the sustainability and sourcing of the seafood endearing? Or should Jane lace up those running shoes of hers and haul ass in the opposite direction? Cue the great debate among BLL’s fandom.
Plenty of fans feel like there are other fish in the sea, and Jane needs to cast a new line.
The way Corey said “We’re touching” while hugging #BigLittleLies pic.twitter.com/VmhkIaPiOx
— adriana (@AforAva_) June 24, 2019
Corey is so awkward #BigLittleLies
— Haley (@mthoughtsrablog) June 24, 2019
Corey: I want to meet your kid. Also let's kiss!
Me and Jane: let's pump the brakes immediately before you end up wearing my skin at some point…#BigLittleLies— So…I'm Watching This Show (@soimwatching) June 24, 2019
Wow Jane is really on this date with this man-child #BigLittleLies
— Rin the Conqueror (@RinRobin3) June 24, 2019
I don’t like this guys for Jane. At all. #BigLittleLies
— Harry (@DeoWatti) June 24, 2019
This dude is way too hipster. Get out while you still can, Jane. #BigLittleLies
— Olivia Truffaut-Wong (@iWatchiAm) June 24, 2019
Others think the quirky surfer is actually pretty darn adorable.
Big big crush on Corey… #BigLittleLies
— Kristin Davids (@anEnemyOfLove) June 24, 2019
Gotta say, I liked the dancing scene with Surfer Dude and Bangs #BigLittleLies
— Jane Murauda (@Jane87752897) June 24, 2019
Some fans just don’t know what to make of the situation.
Jane and Corey are so cute…but this is def gonna end badly isn't it #biglittlelies
— Terence Johnson (@LeNoirAuteur) June 24, 2019
If this guy turns out to be a creep I’m gonna be so upset. Jane deserves to laugh and smile, ugh pls don’t be a creep ???? #BigLittleLies
— Chris (@_plathanos) June 24, 2019
And a few think Corey could be downright sinister.
I wonder if Jane’s new love interest is related to Perry and Mary Louise. Maybe he’s just fishing (no pun intended) for information. ???? #BigLittleLies #BLL2
— The Heart Broke (@TheHeartBroke) June 24, 2019
What is Jane even doing with this guy???
Something is so off there.
I guess it could just be social anxiety and not something malicious… How old was Perry, anyway… ????#BigLittleLies— awickedshape (@awickedshape) June 24, 2019
Also this new guy Jane went on a date with is the zodiac killer. He just never aged. #BigLittleLies
— Problematic Fave (@NetflixFunny) June 24, 2019
As for the rest of us, we just need a GPS ping for Coffee Shop Tom.
Where’s the cute coffee guy that was interested in jane ?! And why they stopped going there ! It was there favorite place ???? #BigLittlelies pic.twitter.com/dbdbqXNRHY
— An Asshole. (@ShadyM99) June 24, 2019
Is #BigLittleLies really not going to tell us what happened with Jane and the barista from last season?
— Amanda E. Newman (@AmandaENewman) June 24, 2019
So, really, what do we know about Corey? Not much, right? He’s cute. He cares about the environment. Maybe he went to Otter Bay Elementary, eh? Other than that, Corey is a bit of a question mark. It’s not even clear how old he is supposed to be in series. Fortunately for fans, Smith — who plays Corey — touched base with Entertainment Weekly after Sunday’s episode with a few surprising insights (FYI, Smith is 34 in real life).
For starters, Corey probably already realizes that Jane has even more trauma in her past than witnessing Perry’s death. “Yes, he’s very empathetic… He’s somebody that has gone through therapy and had lots of diagnoses thrown his way, and I think he is more sensitive than the average guy you see running up to you on the beach with a surfboard in their hands,” Smith explained.
Having said that, Smith isn’t ruling out the possibility that Corey might be hiding a dark history, too. “Anything is possible,” he teased. “We’re all these complicated humans that have the propensity for good and bad, and this show is really good at exploring that. And just like any of the other people in this world, you never know.”
Damn, now we really don’t know. Next week’s episode reportedly involves a party, so here’s hoping Corey’s party persona offers a bit more clarity.