‘The Umbrella Academy’ season 3: release date, plot, cast and everything we know so far

What can we expect from the return of Gerard Way’s sublime superhero show?

The second season of Gerard Way’s The Umbrella Academy arrived on Netflix at the end of July 2020 and saw the return of our favourite dysfunctional gang of sibling superheroes.

As our five star NME review notes, “it’s a flawless series that doesn’t put a foot wrong”. So if you haven’t watched it yet, what are you waiting for? It’s ok, we’ll wait for you.

Spoiler alert…

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Despite Luther, Vanya, Five, Klaus, Allison and Diego avoiding another apocalypse and finding a way to time travel back to their own decade, there’s no such thing as a happy ending just yet for The Umbrella Academy.

The season ended with a whole host of new questions that need answering ASAP, so just how long do we have to wait to find out just what The Sparrow Academy is? Here’s everything we know so far.

Will there be a third series of The Umbrella Academy?

Yes. The show was renewed for a third season in November 2020.

Season three is set to include 10 one-hour episodes, and will pick up where the second season left off.

When will season three start shooting?

Filming began in Toronto in February 2021, and on February 16, Elliot Page shared a photograph from set, confirming he had begun filming for the new season.

“Omg we’re back again ☂,” Page captioned the pic of his chair.

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The season later wrapped filming in August 2021, with the show’s stars confirming the news in a clip posted on the show’s official social media.

When will the third series be released?

The third season will be with fans on June 22, 2022, with the news first confirmed at SXSW by showrunner Steve Blackman, before the show officially revealed the date on social media.

Is there a trailer?

You bet. A full trailer was released on May 19, showcasing the Sparrow Academy, the debut of Viktor Hargreeves (Elliot Page) who uses he/him pronouns, and plenty of powers. You can check it out below.

The Umbrella Academy previously gave fans a brief look at season three as part of its date announcement, giving fans a glimpse at the Sparrows.

Check it out below:

Who will be returning for the third series of The Umbrella Academy?

Netflix has confirmed that returning cast members will include Vanya (Elliot Page), Five (Aidan Gallagher), Klaus (Robert Sheehan), Allison (Emmy Raver-Lampman), Diego (David Castañeda), Luther (Tom Hopper) Ben (Justin H Min (Ben), Lila (Ritu Arya) and Reginald (Colm Feore).

On January 11, 2021, a number of new cast additions were announced who will all make up the Sparrow Academy.

Justin Cornwell (I Am the Night) will play Sparrow #1 Marcus, who is described as “honest, virtuous, and demanding” and oozing “confidence and leadership without ever having to raise his voice”.

Sparrow #2 is Ben – though this version is a “Machiavellian tactician” and “determined to gain his status as the leader at all costs” – who is followed by Sparrow #3 Fei (Brintne Oldford), a misanthrope who is usually the smartest person in the room.

Sparrow #4 is Alphonso (Jake Epstein), who has years of crime-fighting that “have left his face and body with countless visual reminders of his battles”, and he has “a caustic and biting sense of humor”.

Genesis Rodriguez will play Sparrow #5, Sloane, a romantic who feels a higher cosmic calling, while Cazzie David plays Sparrow #6, Jayme, who is close to Aphonso and a “loner”.

Finally, Sparrow #7 is Christopher – aka the Existential Dread Inducing Psykronium Cube – who is the Sparrow’s oracle and can induce “paralyzing fear”, though is treated as a sibling.

Thanks to the wonders of time travel, it’s not out of the question for Grace (Jordan Claire Robbins) Pogo (Adam Godley) and Cha-Cha (Mary J. Blige) to come back from the dead. Speaking of which, we wouldn’t be surprised to see The Handler (Kate Walsh) somehow survive another seemingly-fatal killing blow.

The Umbrella Academy, Season 2. Credit: Netflix/Press

What will happen in season three of The Umbrella Academy?

Following the events of season two, according to the official season three synopsis the “smart, stylish, and about as warm as a sea of icebergs” Sparrows “immediately clash with the Umbrellas in a violent face-off that turns out to be the least of everyone’s concerns”.

It continues: “Navigating challenges, losses and surprises of their own — and dealing with an unidentified destructive entity wreaking havoc in the Universe (something they may have caused) — now all they need to do is convince Dad’s new and possibly better family to help them put right what their arrival made wrong.

“Will they find a way back to their pre-apocalyptic lives? Or is this new world about to reveal more than just a hiccup in the timeline?”

The fourth volume of The Umbrella Academy comic book is called ‘The Sparrow Academy’ which lines up perfectly with the big reveal at the end of season two.

Umbrella Academy
Elliot Page in ‘The Umbrella Academy’. CREDIT: Christos Kalohoridis/Netflix

According to creator Gerard Way, that volume of the comic, “deals with, something that had been secret for a long time, and our siblings learn a lot about what was happening behind the scenes, as well as discovering the true nature of some characters that have been with them since the beginning. The series finally starts to answer the question: ‘What about the other babies born on that day, in that moment?’ The Umbrella Academy siblings are not alone in the world anymore.”

So expect something similar for season three of The Umbrella Academy on Netflix. But not too similar, “We accepted early on that (the TV show and the comic) are two different things, and they can both exist at the same time,” showrunner Blackwell told NME.

We’ve also still got questions about The Commission, Sir Reginald Hargreaves being an alien and having interests on “the dark side of the moon” and what happens with Harland and the powers he got from Vanya.

Have any photographs been shared?

Netflix has shared a few first-look photos from the third season. Check them out below:

What about an Umbrella Academy spin-off?

The Umbrella Academy comic book has a history of one-shot issues that look at the gang’s solo adventures but there’s a proper spin-off for fan favourite Klaus coming in September called ‘You Look Like Death: Tales From The Umbrella Academy’.

It looks at what happened to Klaus between leaving the academy as a kid and when we meet him at the start of Volume One. “It felt like a big story in itself,” according to Way. “Since then, I’ve filled in the gaps on what the other siblings were up to in that ten-year span and I’d like to explore those stories as well. Klaus was always the first, though.”

So there’s plenty of material for a prequel if Netflix fancied it. Robert Sheehan also loves playing the character, telling NME: “Klaus is, I think, at his most interesting when he’s in a constant sort of tumbling change…I’ve invested so much time into the little fucker.”

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