Peyton List and Jennifer Tilly Ignite Drama in "School Spirits" Season 3 Reveal

Olivia Bennett, 12/7/2025Anticipation builds as "School Spirits" returns for Season 3, featuring Peyton List as Maddie Nears. Set to premiere January 28, 2026, the series promises a blend of supernatural intrigue and high school drama, with new cast member Jennifer Tilly adding her unique flair to the mix.

And what would a fresh haunting be without Peyton List, that rare mix of spectral fragility and barely concealed steel? She’s back in Maddie Nears’ shoes—well, perhaps shoes is a strong word for the dearly departed—with executive producer stripes gleaming. Incidentally, her on-screen limbo doesn’t seem any more restful than the era of low-rise jeans; death here is, apparently, just the start of the syllabus. The upcoming season alludes to “terrifying visions” for Maddie and a shadow thick enough to give any guidance counselor hives.

Questions—always more questions. Why Split River High? If there’s a supernatural epicenter, this little institution has it on lock, with enough lost souls to fill a PTA meeting and then some. Maddie becomes the de facto guardian for both the quick and the dead; meanwhile, Simon (Kristian Ventura, whose haunted eyes seem to know ten seasons’ worth of secrets) can’t quit the obsession he’s developed with the school’s haunted origins. The showrunners dangle new dangers just out of reach, as the line between world and underworld blurs. If genre-bending needed a mascot, this might be it.

Supporting cast? More like an occult roll call. Spencer MacPherson returns as the wounded jock, Xavier; Kiara Pichardo as Nicole—never quite at ease in the cafeteria, living or ethereal; Sarah Yarkin gives Rhonda that biting comic timing that could slice through even the thickest ghostly gloom. Then Milo Manheim’s Wally Clark—perpetually adrift—is a reminder that ghosthood’s not without its peculiar charms. However, keep your eyes peeled for the new arrivals: Jennifer Tilly (yes, from “Bound,” that gleaming relic of ‘90s neo-noir chic, and the Chucky-verse), graces Split River as Dr. Hunter-Price. Her presence isn’t so much scene-stealing as scene-upending, injecting a tinge of knowing camp that will likely prove irresistible. Ari Dalbert and Erika Swayze round things out, ensuring nobody’s afterlife stays too tidy.

Dreamt up by Nate and Megan Trinrud, with Oliver Goldstick again guiding from the showrunner’s chair, the series doesn’t simply borrow from the well of supernatural high school dramas—it distills it, throws in a twist of genre-anxiety, and serves it with a garnish of millennial dread. One minute, the visuals pop with pastel adolescence; the next, everything shifts, shadows lengthen, and Split River feels one heartbeat away from a Lynchian fever dream. The creative team knows its legacy: grab a pinch from “Buffy,” a shade from “Riverdale,” and yet leave something uncannily original swirling in the air.

Global ambitions seem to go hand in hand with a haunted high school these days. Paramount+ does not keep these ghosts on a local leash. With the first two seasons now streaming across thirteen countries—including stalwarts like the UK and Japan—Split River High has evolved into a worldwide séance, arguably the least expected export of the decade.

Of course, teen dramas aren’t exactly a rare commodity. The formula—which could be copy-pasted across eras—often blends bittersweet romance, parental conspiracies, and a body count. But there’s an unlikely tenderness here, a respect for characters’ burdens—even when those burdens are literal chains. Scenes meander from heartbreak to high-camp horror with a nimbleness that, frankly, most grown-up prestige dramas would envy.

“The veil between worlds grows dangerously thin.” It works as both a plot device and a kind of artistic mission statement. There’s something almost punk about the way “School Spirits” refuses to decide what it wants to be—except perhaps profoundly entertaining. The season ahead offers mystery, style, and maybe even catharsis, for viewers willing to wander these haunted halls after hours. Graduation? That’s another story. In Split River, some doors are better left closed… but when has that ever stopped anyone?

Paramount+ seems utterly allergic to the idea of leaving a good ghost story in peace. Less than two years after its sophomore rendezvous with the afterlife, “School Spirits” refuses to rest quietly—it's storming back to Split River High, stirring up both fan fervor and spectral secrets that most would rather keep buried. Circle January 28, 2026: that’s when the next installment promises to upend suburban purgatory all over again.And what would a fresh haunting be without Peyton List, that rare mix of spectral fragility and barely concealed steel? She’s back in Maddie Nears’ shoes—well, perhaps shoes is a strong word for the dearly departed—with executive producer stripes gleaming. Incidentally, her on-screen limbo doesn’t seem any more restful than the era of low-rise jeans; death here is, apparently, just the start of the syllabus. The upcoming season alludes to “terrifying visions” for Maddie and a shadow thick enough to give any guidance counselor hives.Questions—always more questions. Why Split River High? If there’s a supernatural epicenter, this little institution has it on lock, with enough lost souls to fill a PTA meeting and then some. Maddie becomes the de facto guardian for both the quick and the dead; meanwhile, Simon (Kristian Ventura, whose haunted eyes seem to know ten seasons’ worth of secrets) can’t quit the obsession he’s developed with the school’s haunted origins. The showrunners dangle new dangers just out of reach, as the line between world and underworld blurs. If genre-bending needed a mascot, this might be it.Supporting cast? More like an occult roll call. Spencer MacPherson returns as the wounded jock, Xavier; Kiara Pichardo as Nicole—never quite at ease in the cafeteria, living or ethereal; Sarah Yarkin gives Rhonda that biting comic timing that could slice through even the thickest ghostly gloom. Then Milo Manheim’s Wally Clark—perpetually adrift—is a reminder that ghosthood’s not without its peculiar charms. However, keep your eyes peeled for the new arrivals: Jennifer Tilly (yes, from “Bound,” that gleaming relic of ‘90s neo-noir chic, and the Chucky-verse), graces Split River as Dr. Hunter-Price. Her presence isn’t so much scene-stealing as scene-upending, injecting a tinge of knowing camp that will likely prove irresistible. Ari Dalbert and Erika Swayze round things out, ensuring nobody’s afterlife stays too tidy.Dreamt up by Nate and Megan Trinrud, with Oliver Goldstick again guiding from the showrunner’s chair, the series doesn’t simply borrow from the well of supernatural high school dramas—it distills it, throws in a twist of genre-anxiety, and serves it with a garnish of millennial dread. One minute, the visuals pop with pastel adolescence; the next, everything shifts, shadows lengthen, and Split River feels one heartbeat away from a Lynchian fever dream. The creative team knows its legacy: grab a pinch from “Buffy,” a shade from “Riverdale,” and yet leave something uncannily original swirling in the air.Global ambitions seem to go hand in hand with a haunted high school these days. Paramount+ does not keep these ghosts on a local leash. With the first two seasons now streaming across thirteen countries—including stalwarts like the UK and Japan—Split River High has evolved into a worldwide séance, arguably the least expected export of the decade.Of course, teen dramas aren’t exactly a rare commodity. The formula—which could be copy-pasted across eras—often blends bittersweet romance, parental conspiracies, and a body count. But there’s an unlikely tenderness here, a respect for characters’ burdens—even when those burdens are literal chains. Scenes meander from heartbreak to high-camp horror with a nimbleness that, frankly, most grown-up prestige dramas would envy.“The veil between worlds grows dangerously thin.” It works as both a plot device and a kind of artistic mission statement. There’s something almost punk about the way “School Spirits” refuses to decide what it wants to be—except perhaps profoundly entertaining. The season ahead offers mystery, style, and maybe even catharsis, for viewers willing to wander these haunted halls after hours. Graduation? That’s another story. In Split River, some doors are better left closed… but when has that ever stopped anyone?