The ‘Adults’ Season 2 Finale: Relationship Shifts and Romantic Horizons Ahead

Amita Rao as Issa, Jack Innanen as Paul Baker, Owen Thiele as Anton, Lucy Freyer as Billie and Malik Elassal as Samir on season two of “Adults.”

Michael Gibson/FX

Warning: Spoilers ahead for season two of Adults.

Season two of Adults concluded with a surprising cliffhanger that left audiences stunned.

The FX series Adults, which follows five friends sharing a home in New York City, premiered its second season on Thursday. Across the eight episodes, Samir (Malik Elassal), Billie (Lucy Freyer), Paul Baker (Jack Innanen), Issa (Amita Rao), and Anton (Owen Thiele) navigated numerous hurdles, ranging from an invasive raccoon to relationship endings.

Here is how the season concludes and the foundation it sets for a potential future installment.

Season Two Plot Summary

Season two delves deeper into the interpersonal dynamics of the core group. The first season concluded with Paul Baker and Anton marrying so the former could remain in the country, establishing a love triangle between the newlyweds and Issa, Paul Baker’s girlfriend.

Halfway through the season, during the fourth episode, Paul Baker and Issa end their relationship because they are incompatible. This is not the only split this season—Samir and Carly (Rachel Marsh) also separate upon realizing a long-distance relationship is unworkable. Meanwhile, Billie enters a casual-hookup phase, and Issa struggles to re-enter the dating scene. Conversely, Anton develops profound romantic feelings for Paul Baker.

This tension peaks in the season two finale, titled “Vote for Paul Baker,” where Paul Baker campaigns for president of the Bayside Terrace Homeowners Association. His candidacy inadvertently endangers the group when the incumbent president’s daughter, Nina Adler (Zosia Mamet), threatens to report them for violating a zoning rule prohibiting three or more unrelated adults from cohabitating. To preserve their living situation, the group rallies to dissuade locals from voting for Paul Baker, ultimately causing his defeat.

On election day, Issa recognizes that Anton has genuine feelings for Paul Baker and urges him to pursue them. Anton initially denies this but eventually admits that loving someone is embarrassing. He is also hesitant to cross that boundary because Issa previously dated Paul Baker, though she assures him it does not matter, as their friendship will always remain paramount regardless of the relationships and heartbreaks they encounter.

Unbeknownst to Issa and Anton, their intimate conversation is broadcast live on television as part of election-night coverage from the library where the voting is occurring.

Paul Baker watches this on TV and is shocked by Anton’s revelation. Issa and Anton rush home just in time for the group to discover that Paul Baker lost the election by a single vote. As everyone celebrates, Anton approaches Paul Baker and kisses him.

That night, Issa invites Margaux (Mia Fowler), a librarian she connected with earlier in the finale, into her room for a romantic encounter. While in the hallway, they hear noises from Paul Baker and Samir’s room. Assuming it is Paul Baker and Anton, Issa explains that two of her roommates are hooking up and she is “actually really happy about it.”

Issa and Margaux return to her room, and in a major plot twist, it is revealed that Samir and Billie are the ones inside, not Paul Baker and Anton.

Renewal Status and Future Plans

The ending for Anton and Paul Baker was anticipated, as the entire season had been building toward it. Billie and Samir’s secret hookup was more unexpected, though not entirely unforeseen.

Samir had hastily planned to move to Seattle to be with Carly. Naturally, that changed when they broke up, but Billie’s anxiety about the group drifting apart may have driven her to explore romantic feelings for her childhood friend. Whether this was an impulsive decision they will regret or the beginning of a new relationship remains to be seen.

FX has not yet renewed Adults for a third season, but series co-creator Rebecca Shaw told Entertainment Weekly that she and co-creator Ben Kronengold have “many, many plans” should the show be renewed.

In a separate interview with Swoon, Kronengold hinted that Billie and Samir’s hookup will “have consequences for everyone.”

“We understand why all four of those people had the nights they had in our finale, but I think now we really get to say, ‘What next?’ What is next for Billie and Samir is going to look very different than what is next for Anton and Paul Baker,” Shaw told TheWrap. “They all made decisions that they cannot take back, which is always a really fun place to find ourselves.”

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