TV

GLOW season 3 trailer promises more romance, wrestling, and Geena Davis in Las Vegas

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Published on June 17, 2019 10:30AM EDT

After last season ended with the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling hopping on a bus to Las Vegas, EW has an exclusive look at the GLOW season 3 trailer, which gives a peek at how the cast has taken to performing live at the Fan-Tan Hotel and Casino every night.

“This season feels unlike anything we��ve shot before and we really embrace all the things that are Vegas, you know? Kind of the danger, the excitement, the sex, the raciness,” explains star Alison Brie. “I think there’s a lot of debauchery in season 3.”

Co-creator Liz Flahive notes that the women are entering a very weird period in Vegas history where “the mob has just cleared out, but Steve Wynn hasn’t quite come in,” which is kind of where Fan-Tan entertainment director Sandy Devereaux St. Clair, played by Oscar-winner Geena Davis, comes in.

St. Clair is a particularly revolutionary character having found a way to shift from talent to management in 1986, meaning she will have a lot to teach the more business-minded Debbie (Betty Gilpin) over the course of the season.

Flahive says Davis was “such a shot in the arm for all of us; we were just so excited to have her on the show from top to bottom.” GLOW co-creator Carly Mensch jokes that even their normally chill assistant directors would announce their new cast member as “Geena Motherf—ing Davis” every time she arrived to set. The setting of the series propelled the mystique of Davis too, given how, as Flahive tells it, “you put that woman in like ’80s hair, makeup, and wardrobe it was just like holy moly we’re here.”

While season 2 of GLOW dipped its toe into queer storylines, the trailer for season 3 shows that Vegas is bringing it out even more. When it comes to new couple Arthie (Sunita Mani) and Yolanda (Shakira Barrera), Mensch notes “Vegas is such an insane place to try and start a relationship … and Arthie is a repressed nerd who’s never been in a relationship before, so, you know, they’ve got some s–t to work through.”

The 1986 timeline gives extra heft to the queer storylines, especially with regards to Bash (Chris Lowell), who just lost his friend (and lover?) to what’s suggested to be AIDS. As teased in the trailer, Bash will be getting closer to the Fan-Tan’s resident female impersonator Bobby Barnes (Kevin Cahoon), who runs a drag show called Icons.

Surprisingly, while Ruth has found a bigger role on the wrestling show and a new boyfriend, the trailer has her sharing longing glances with director Sam (Marc Maron). Flahive says Ruth’s uncertainty though comes from the question of “Is Ruth allowed to be happy and does Debbie have to watch it?” Because “the will-they-won’t-they of the show for us has always been Ruth and Debbie.”

That relationship, in particular, has been a highlight of season 3 for Brie, who teases “we get to have some fun together which is nice. I feel like we’ve been very few scenes of Ruth and Debbie enjoying one another’s company.”

Other things to get excited about GLOW‘s third season include new costumes, new wrestling personas, new unexpected pair-ups (Flahive and Mensch are a particularly excited for fans to see Sheila and Tammé’s friendship blossom), and all the stir-craziness that comes from having to do the same show night after night in sin city.

If the season 3 trailer has fans extra excited, Flahive promises that GLOW is showing no signs of stopping — even if it’s been noticeably tough for Netflix shows to get past a third season. “I will say on record: season 3 is not where we intend to end our story.” Flahive jokes, “We did not build this season thinking ‘Netflix seems to be canceling shows after three seasons, we should create an ending that could be an ending.’ This is not the ending of our series.”

GLOW season 3 premieres Aug. 9 on Netflix. Watch EW’s exclusive trailer for the show above.

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