What could possibly have ended the tight knit 30 year long friendship of Tully (Katherine Heigl) and Kate (Sarah Chalke) in the Netflix series Firefly Lane?

Will Tully learn who her father is? Will Johnny (Ben Lawson) survive his war correspondent stint in Iraq and save his marriage to Kate? The poignant drama series, based on Kristin Hannah’s best-selling novel of the same name, returns with part one of a two-part second season on December 2. Australian actor Ben Lawson sat down with us at a Hollywood coffee shop to talk about what to expect in the new season and, of course, the memorable hair and clothing from each decade that are featured in the flashbacks!

Does the second season depart from the book?

There is definitely a departure from the book, and the biggest change is the reason Tully and Kate have their falling out. People who have seen it so far have been really drawn in by that and also the answers to the question of whose funeral takes place at the end of the first season. That was when we realize that Tully and Kate aren’t friends anymore. I don’t know how many times people have asked me in the last two years, “Why aren’t they friends anymore? Why have they fallen out?” Finally, they’ll stop asking! (laughs).

Why do you think fans are so invested in the friendship between Kate and Tully?

The whole show hinges on that friendship, and that’s what I think makes the show so special. We are used to seeing a lot of love stories and romantic stories and this is a different kind of love story, something that I think every male or female wants in their own life, that kind of ride or die friendship not connected to work or family. Without that, the show wouldn’t work.

How did you feel about Johnny’s crazy hair styles and outfits during the flashbacks?

The wigs are hilarious. There are more wigs this season than ever before because there are more than two different time periods we visit. The hair people were also really open to ideas, so I felt like I was able to contribute more and give my opinions. I’d be taking photos of the 90s Hugh Grant and Michael J. Fox into the hair trailer and say, “Let’s try to get something like this shape.” We all brought in some of our own clothes from our wardrobes for different eras too, and I managed to get a cow print jacket in.

What do you think of Johnny’s storyline this season, coming back from Iraq?

Johnny has a really serious storyline after Iraq and the consequences when he comes home. Obviously, I took the PTSD stuff very seriously and read up a lot and watched lots of documentaries, but I definitely felt the responsibility of playing that storyline.

Was it fun getting to play Johnny as an Australian? He even eats Vegemite in one scene!

I think everyone was really happy to make that character authentic. I’m also an expat who has lived in America for a long time now, so I certainly have all of those reminders of home around me, including Vegemite in my cupboard!

How did you get along with the Firefly Lane girls?

We filmed for nine months this time and during the worst part of Covid, so we weren’t allowed to go out and socialize on weekends and spent even more time with each other. Sarah would host games nights, and at Katie’s house, it would be more late-night wine and cheese and playing music. You spend so many hours on set with these people, if you don’t get along the days can be really long. But Sarah and Katie are both just so great and funny, we took the work seriously, but we also tried to have as much fun with it as we could.