HBO Max Renews Ballroom Competition ‘Legendary’ For Season 2
Following the last two episodes of Legendary season 1, HBO Max has officially renewed the reality competition series for a second season. Featuring Jameela Jamil, Leiomy Maldonado, Law Roach, and Megan Thee Stallion as judges and Deshaun Wesley as a host, Legendary was one of the few original HBO Max shows that were made available at launch. Judging by critical acclaim and social media engagement, the series has been a huge hit for the newly-launched streaming service, and also a triumph for the Black and Latinx LGBTQ+ community.
In the series, eight 'houses' compete in a series of balls that include categories like voguing, walking, dancing, and modeling. During its first season, Legendary featured House of Balmain, House of Ebony, House of Escada, House of Gucci, House of Saint Laurent, House of Ninja, House of West, and House of Xclusive Lanvin. Now that the last two episodes of the series have been released, one of those houses has been crowned the winner and took home the $100,000 grand prize.
Capitalizing from the Legendary finale hype, HBO Max has announced that it is renewing the series for a second season. Moreover, HBO Max has confirmed that the entire season 1 team has signed on to return for season 2, including host Dashaun Wesley and judges Leiomy Maldonado, Law Roach, Megan Thee Stallion, and Jameela Jamil. In a press release, HBO Max Chief Content Officer Kevin Reilly has said, "We knew we had something special and are proud that critics and audiences alike have embraced the series. Bringing this incredible world back for a second season further our commitment to high quality, compelling storytelling."
In addition, the Legendary season 2 announcement revealed that the reality series will move out of New York City for its second installment. According to HBO Max, the second season of Legendary will take place in Los Angeles. While it is still unclear whether the competition will keep moving to a new city during each new season, it is fairly normal for TV shows to move back and forth between Los Angeles and New York City. Otherwise, it is possible that this was a one-time adjustment that was made due to the fact that New York City has placed stricter restrictions for studios to shoot new movies and shows during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The season 2 renewal of Legendary is good news for Black and Latinx LGBTQ+ audiences that saw themselves properly represented and celebrated on the show. Furthermore, it certainly seems like this has been a hit show for HBO Max, and that the streamer believes that a second season is worth the investment.
Source: Kevin Reilly