What time will His Dark Materials season 3 air on HBO? Release date, plot, and more details explored

Season 3 of His Dark Materials, the eight-part fantasy TV series, is set to hit HBO on December 5 at 9 pm ET, and fans are over the moon about the news.

The first two episodes, The Enchanted Sleeper and The Break will be released this Monday, while the other four will premiere weekly every Monday until December 19.

Although details about the finale of His Dark Materials are not yet known, this will mark the last season of the multi-award nominated show. Dafne Keen will be seen as Lyra Belacqua, Kit Connor as Pantalaimon's voice, Ruth Wilson as Marisa Coulter, and James McAvoy as Lord Asriel Belacqua, among others.

His Dark Materials, taken from Philip Pullman's trilogy by the same name, aired its first episode on November 4, 2019. The first season comprised eight episodes, while the second season had seven episodes.

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His Dark Materials season 3 is based on the third part of Philip Pullman's trilogy

The last episode of season 2, Æsahættr, was broadcast on December 28, 2020.

In the post-credits scene of that episode, Roger and Lyra called each other to an undisclosed location, and the trailer for season 3 of His Dark Materials shows that Lyra dreams of their meeting.

In the almost 3-minute-long clip, the speaker warns of a "real war coming," and Asriel declares that he is "gathering the greatest from every world and would risk everything" to "ensure victory."

Asriel asks,

"What are you willing to risk?"

After this, the trailer shows Father President MacPhail (Will Keen), who wants Lyra "dead or alive."

Meanwhile, Lyra imagines visiting the land of the dead, and her mother approaches Asriel (Lyra's father) to save their daughter from danger and asks him "not to fail her." Moreover, Will Parry (Amir Wilson) is also heard preparing to "take the knife to Asriel."

The trailer ends with a powerful dialog by Asriel, who says:

"The authority wants you to be afraid...Well, the authority has no power over us...Today, we are free!"

The base material for season 3 is The Amber Spyglass, the third part of Pullman's trilogy. As per Goodreads, its synopsis reads:

"Will is the bearer of the knife. Now, accompanied by angels, his task is to deliver that powerful, dangerous weapon to Lord Asriel - by the command of his dying father. But how can he go looking for Lord Asriel when Lyra is gone? Only with her help can he fathom the myriad plots and intrigues that beset him."

It adds:

"The two great powers of the many worlds are lining up for war, and Will must find Lyra, for together they are on their way to battle, an inevitable journey that will even take them to the world of the dead."

After The Enchanted Sleeper and The Break, the next four episodes of His Dark Materials season 3 have been titled The Intention Craft, Lyra and Her Death, No Way Out, and The Abyss.

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Meet the cast and crew of the show

Apart from the ones mentioned, season 3 will also star returning actors like Amir Wilson as Will Parry, Will Keen as Hugh MacPhail, Ariyon Bakare as Lord Carlo Boreal, Ruta Gedmintas as Serafina Pekkala, Jade Anouka as Ruta Skadi, and Lin-Manuel Miranda as Lee Scoresby.

Other actors reprising their His Dark Materials roles include Joe Tandberg as Iorek Byrnison (voice, motion capture), Simone Kirby as Dr. Mary Malone, Andrew Scott as Colonel John Parry, and Lewin Lloyd as Roger Parslow.

Season 3 will, however, welcome some new faces too. They are Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Commander Ogunwe, Amber Fitzgerald-Woolf as Ama, Jamie Ward as Father Gomez, Chipo Chung as Xaphania, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith as Balthamos, Simon Harrison as Baruch, Sian Clifford as Agent Salmakia, and Jonathan Aris as Commander Roke.

Jack Thorne, best known for penning the screenplay of Enola Holmes, is the writer of His Dark Materials, the TV series. Welsh company Bad Wolf, and Warner Bros. Discovery's film production studio New Line Productions have bankrolled His Dark Materials.

Pullman and Thorne are also co-executive producers of the popular show.