HBO Max’s Best New Show Is Already Back With a Second Season

The wait is finally over for fans of HBO Max’s best new show from 2025. The streamer is beginning 2026 with a solid lineup of new streaming titles that includes everything from Ex Machina to John Wick. As subscribers wait for the debut of one of the most anticipated shows of the year later this month, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, one of HBO Max’s best shows just returned for its second season.

Less than a year after wrapping its record-breaking debut run, The Pitt is officially back at HBO Max. The best new medical drama on TV is scheduled to return for its second season on HBO Max on January 8th at 9 p.m. ET. Each season of the series covers a single, continuous 15-hour shift at the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center and centers around the emergency department staff that works there. New episodes of The Pitt Season 2, which picks up 10 months after the events of Season 1, are scheduled to air weekly on Thursdays on HBO Max leading into the season finale on April 16th.

The Pitt Is the Best Medical Drama Since ER, and It Keeps Getting Better

Medical dramas are some of the most popular shows on TV, but The Pitt is a standout even in a crowded genre. The series isn’t just the best medical drama since ER, but the best currently on TV. Praised for its gritty realism and focus on healthcare workers’ struggles, the show captures the chaotic, real-time feel of an emergency department, with its real-time format where each episode represents one hour of a shift, creating constant, escalating tension and immersion. The show’s unique format and dedication to authenticity don’t sacrifice character development, though, and the realistic environment and setup allow details to emerge organically as the characters react and adjust to immediate crises.

The Pitt was an astounding success in its debut season, and it’s not only matched its “Certified Fresh” debut run but surpassed it in its second run. Season 2 currently holds a 97% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, up two points over Season 1, with critics describing it as a near-perfect season marked by more harrowing realism and timely stories. In a review for The Wrap, Zaki Hasan wrote, “In a TV landscape cluttered with distractions and noise, The Pitt remains one of the most consistently compelling shows to watch — whether week-to-week or binged in one go.” Slant Magazine’s Steven Nguyen Scaife described Season 2 as “another carefully calibrated tapestry of chaos and humanity,” and Karen M. Peterson wrote for AwardsWatch that the series “continues to be a visceral, powerful, and affecting experience and the best show on television.”

Will There Be a The Pitt Season 3?

HBO Max is planning to leave Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center anytime soon. Just hours before the Season 2 premiere, the streamer renewed The Pitt for a third season. It’s still too soon for any details about Season 3 to drop, but the show’s future looks bright even beyond its third outing. HBO and HBO Max chairman and CEO Casey Bloys has spoken highly of the show, and series creator R. Scott Gemmill told The Hollywood Reporter that he believes “a very important part of my job is to keep a show on the air as long as possible.”

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