Julianne Nicholson Teases Shailene Woodley, Thomas Doherty’s ‘Paradise’ Roles Amid Season 2 Changes (Exclusive)

Season 2 of Hulu’s Paradise will look very different — especially with the addition of new faces such as Shailene Woodley and Thomas Doherty.

Star Julianne Nicholson teased the changes while speaking exclusively to Us Weekly at the BAFTA TV Tea event on September 13, saying, “The most exciting thing about Paradise is that it starts in the outside world.”

Getting outside of the bunker will expand the story. “The first three episodes are about discovering a whole new world and a whole new cast of characters,” Nicholson, 54, who plays Sinatra, shared. “It’s pretty exciting where they find themselves.”

Nicholson was excited to share the screen with new cast members, adding, “It’s been amazing to have some fresh blood [with Shailene and Thomas].”

Hulu’s political thriller Paradise, which premiered in January, took the internet by storm as viewers theorized about the various plot twists. Creator Dan Fogelman‘s Hulu series initially appeared to be set in a serene and wealthy community forced to face the realities of a shocking murder. In typical Fogelman fashion, however, there was a twist at the end of the premiere, when Paradise was revealed to be an underground bunker housing the world’s most prominent individuals after an apocalyptic event destroyed the rest of humanity.

“The biggest lengths [we had to go through to keep the twist secret] are happening now when we’re actually talking to people about it,” Nicholson told Us in February about keeping the onscreen surprises a secret. “When we were on set, everybody knows what’s up, so we don’t have to be that secretive.”

She continued: “But now the trick is how do you grab people’s attention and assure them that this is something different without giving away any of the details? But we’re very excited for people to get on the ride with us.”

Some of the larger reveals include information about survivors on the outside — in addition to a bigger mystery about who was responsible for killing James Marsden‘s presidential character minutes into the premiere. (Season 1 also starred Sarah Shahi, Nicole Brydon Bloom, Aliyah Mastin and Percy Daggs IV.)

“I’m always happy for me — the actor — to have as much information as the character does because it is just nicer to not have to fake it sometimes,” Nicholson noted. “We knew fairly soon after filming.”

Paradise has been renewed for season 2 and is currently streaming on Hulu.

With reporting by Olivia Bria