Great news: The Heartstopper Season 3 cast includes most of the characters we’ve grown to love.
There are a few exceptions, of course: Sarah (Olivia Colman) will not be back because of scheduling conflicts, and Ben’s (Sebastian Croft) storyline came to an end.
With the feel-good LGBTQ+ series’ third season getting ready to debut on Netflix on October 3, 2024, there’s no time like the present to refresh your memory about who’s who and what they’re up to.
Charlie Spring
Joe Locke
Unsurprisingly, Charlie will again be part of the Heartstopper Season 3 cast, as the series is centered around him and his relationship with Nick.
There are other characters and couples, but there would be no show without Charlie.
Over the past two seasons, he’s grown from being so insecure about his identity as a gay teenager that he accepted a secret relationship with a guy who treated him like dirt to openly loving Nick.
Season 3 promises a moving mental health storyline for Charlie.
Throughout Season 2, he struggled with an eating disorder, failing to eat while in Paris for so long that he passed out, and if the series follows the storyline in the graphic novels, it will likely get worse.
Locke’s version of Charlie is so relatable that I often want to reach through the TV to give him a hug, yet the star never had any acting experience before landing the role in 2021.
It’s even more impressive considering he beat out 10,000 other actors to play Charlie.
Locke’s career will go far, and he’s already had some success beyond Heartstopper.
Between seasons, US fans of the British series flocked to New York City to see him in Sweeney Todd on Broadway.
Locke also was recently cast in 2024’s Wandavision spinoff, Agatha All Along, which will stream on Disney+ starting in September.
Nick Nelson
Kit Connor
Nick Nelson is the kind of guy that everyone who has ever been a high school student dreams of dating.
He’s not only a star athlete, but he’s genuinely kind, almost to a fault.
Did anyone else want to shake him when he almost got stuck in an absurd love triangle because he was afraid of breaking Imogen’s heart during Season 1?
Fortunately, that’s all behind us now.
Nick will be part of the Heartstopper Season 3 cast, and this time he will have the opportunity to demonstrate how supportive he can be while Charlie works through his mental health issues.
Kit Connor is already an accomplished actor despite being only 20 years old.
His first leading role came at the age of eight, when he played Tom in the movie Get Santa, and he’s also well known for playing a young Elton John in 2019’s Rocketman.
Nick is one of his most popular roles because it’s one of the few examples of positive LGBTQ+ representation in recent months.
Ironically, he first learned about Heartstopper when his sister introduced him to the comics.
Tao Xu
William Gao
Tao was a character who had to grow on me.
During Heartstopper Season 1, he was mostly annoying, as he kept trying to convince Charlie that Nick was straight and not worth Charlie’s time.
He seemed to check off every tired TV trope about jealous best friends, even if his bestie being gay was a unique twist.
Tao’s grown a lot since then, having admitted his fear of losing Charlie and now being willing to openly declare his love for Elle, who is trans.
Heartstopper wouldn’t be the same without him.
Fortunately, Tao is returning as part of the Heartstopper Season 3 cast.
Outside of Heartstopper, William Gao is best known for his role in the 2024 movie Sunrise, a thriller which also stars Neighbours alum and well-known actor Guy Pearce.
Gao is also a musician who is part of a band called Wasia Project, as is his sister, Olivia.
Heartstopper fans have heard his music before, as his band’s song “You’re So Pretty” was featured in an episode of the series.
Elle Argent
Yasmin Finney
Full disclosure: Elle is my favorite character, and I’m a huge fan of the actress who plays her, too, after discovering her on Doctor Who.
Elle is a friend of Charlie and Tao who attended a girls’ grammar school after transitioning shortly before the Season 1 premiere.
I’m always up for more transgender representation, especially when it involves actors who are part of the community.
She will again be part of the Heartstopper Season 3 cast, where she is now attending an arts-focused college.
This is an interesting development for Elle’s character.
She’s finally doing exactly what she has dreamed of doing, not letting anything or anyone hold her back.
However, her school situation separates her from her friend group, especially Tao, who she just started dating.
Yasmin Finney is an openly transgender actor who enjoys showing her audience that it is possible to live happily and authentically as a transgender person.
I first discovered her as Doctor Who’s Rose Noble, a transgender teenager who was fortunate enough to have the full support of her mother, the Doctor’s companion Donna, and who was eager to explore new worlds.
Rose is a very different character from Elle, who rocks the innocent, naive schoolgirl persona, while Rose has an adventurous, bold spirit that her mother is constantly trying to reign in.
FInney’s own joy in being herself shines through in both roles.
My favorite scene in all of Heartstopper is when Elle was dancing at the art exhibition, as her happiness shined through.
Tara Jones
Corinne Brown
Elle never expected Tara to become one of her best friends when they first met.
During Season 1, Elle was too shy to talk to anyone in school and expected to be rejected because she was trans.
She soon learned that Tara was gay and was there to support the beginning of Tara’s relationship with Darcy.
Tara and Darcy almost split up because of Darcy’s homophobic mother interfering with Darcy going to prom, but that turned out to be for the sake of drama, as Darcy explained her mother’s abusive behavior, and Tara forgave her.
Tara will be part of the Heartstopper Season 3 cast, so there will probably be more to come in her and Darcy’s story, even if Tara goes it alone or finds a new girlfriend.
Outside of Heartstopper, Corrine Brown is best known for the 15-minute short Essex Girls, which focuses on Black British girlhood.
She also starred in 2023’s The Kitchen, a Netflix film about a dystopian future where social housing has been eliminated and one brave community refuses to abandon their home.
Recently, she also appeared on the British soap The Doctors.
Brown has been interested in acting since childhood and performed with the Royal Academy Dramatic Youth Company before landing her first part on BBC Three’s My Murder in 2012.
Darcy Olsson
Kizzy Edgell
Darcy, Elle’s other best friend and Tara’s girlfriend, has a complicated life.
Initially, Darcy had to be patient with Tara, who didn’t want to post about their relationship on Instagram or be out to anyone but a few close friends.
At school, Darcy was not only out and proud but stood up to homophobic bullies, but at home, she had to hide who she was because of her mother.
Although it’s not confirmed, it’s possible that Darcy will come out as non-binary when returning as part of the Heartstopper season 3 cast, adding to the series’ queer joy.
Like Joe Locke, Kizzy Edgell made their debut on Heartstopper.
Edgell is non-binary, and in 2023 he came out as transmasculine.
This means that while Edgell is clear that they are not female, but don’t fully identify as male.
Thus, Edgell uses both he and they pronouns.
However, during the first two seasons, Darcy identified as female, and though there are rumors, there has been no confirmation yet about whether Darcy will also come out as non-binary.
Edgell has not appeared in any other roles yet.
They studied psychology before getting the role on Heartstopper.
Isaac Henderson
Tobie Donovan
Isaac is often on the edge of the friend group.
Charlie, Tao, and Tara all are partnered up, while he is not.
Part of the reason for that is that Isaac is asexual, something that I hope the series explores since he is a member of the Heartstopper Season 3 cast.
There is not nearly enough asexual representation on TV, and it’s especially hard for boys who do not experience sexual attraction because of societal expectations that teenage boys and men should be hypersexual.
It isn’t clear yet whether Isaac is aromantic (uninterested in any romance at all) or interested in romance without sex.
It would be great representation for him to develop a platonic relationship that is as emotionally close as his friends’ romantic partnerships.
Tobie Donovan originally intended to be a theatre actor, but took advantage of the opportunity when Heartstopper came along.
He is also well-known as a vlogger, and during the first season of Heartstopper, he created a behind-the-scenes vlog to show his fans how the show was filmed.
Kit Connor gave him a camera so he could continue his vlog, and he reached 100k subscribers in 2022, which earned him a Silver Play Youtube Creator Award.
Imogen Heaney
Rhea Norwood
I was surprised that Imogen was part of the Heartstopper Season 3 cast because there didn’t seem to be much further for her story to go.
During Season 1, Imogen crushed hard on Nick, and was devastated when he broke up with her so that he could explore his feelings for Charlie.
In Season 2, she began dating Ben, who had abused Charlie, and was angry that Nick tried to warn her away from Ben, fueling plenty of teen drama until she eventually learned what Ben was all about.
Ben is no longer part of the series, so Imogen will have to deal with any further fallout from his nonsense on her own, but at least we won’t have to deal with an obsessive love story!
She is a valued member of the friend group, so hopefully, she’ll find some real happiness now and have a worthwhile story.
Norwood was another actress who landed her first major role on Heartstopper.
She originally auditioned as Darcy before landing the role as Imogen.
However, her role as Imogen has already led her to several other roles, most notably as Alice in the BBC drama Consent in 2022.
She also starred in a theatre production of Cabaret as Sally Bowles, which she has said was a lifelong dream of hers.
Norwood is open about the fact that she has Type 1 diabetes, hoping to educate and empower others who have the condition.
Who Else May Be Part of the Heartstopper Season 3 Cast?
There Are Several Guest Stars Or Recurring Characters Coming Up
There are several other characters expected to be part of the Heartstopper Season 3 cast:
- Leila Khan as Sahar Zahid, another classmate of Elle, Darcy, and Tara
- Jenny Walser as Tori Spring, Charlie’s older sister
- Darragh Hand as Michael Holden, a new character who will have scenes with Tori
- Bridgerton‘s Jonathan Bailey as Jack Maddox, an Internet celebrity Charlie has a crush on
- Hayley Atwell as Nick’s aunt
- Eddie Marsan as Charlie’s therapist
Although not confirmed, it’s also possible that Jack Barton will be back as Nick’s annoying brother David, Thibault de Montalembert will reprise his role as Nick’s dad, Bel Priestley
It’s also likely that Ash Self will return as Elle’s new friends Naomi and Felix, Bradley Riches will be back as James (a student who had a crush on Isaac), and Nima Taleghani will return as Mr. Farouk.
Which of these characters do you hope come back? Who are you most looking forward to seeing?
Hit the comments and let us know!
Heartstopper Season 3 will drop on Netflix on October 3, 2024.