We Were Liars is an American psychological thriller television series based on the 2014 novel of the same name by E. Lockhart. It premiered on Amazon Prime Video on June 18, 2025. It was renewed for a second season in September 2025.
Contents
Cast
Main
Emily Alyn Lind as Cadence "Cady" Sinclair Eastman, the eldest grandchild of Harris and Tipper who suffers from memory loss after an accident and one of the Liars.
Raewynn Martel as young Cadence.
Caitlin FitzGerald as Penny Sinclair, the middle Sinclair sister and Cadence's mother.
Elysia Roorbach (season 2) as teen Penny Sinclair.
Mamie Gummer as Carrie Sinclair, the eldest Sinclair sister and Johnny's mother who is a recovering drug addict. She is in a long-term relationship with Ed.
Parker Lapaine (season 2) as teen Carrie Sinclair.
Candice King as Bess Sinclair, the youngest Sinclair sister and Mirren's mother.
Madison Wolfe (season 2) as teen Bess Sinclair.
Rahul Kohli as Ed Patil, Carrie's long-term significant other and Gat's uncle.
Shubham Maheshwari as Gat Patil, Ed's nephew and one of the Liars as well as Cadence's love interest.
Leandro Vigueras as young Gat.
Esther McGregor as Mirren Sinclair Sheffield, Bess' eldest daughter and one of the Liars.
Nikita Gold as young Mirren.
Joseph Zada as Johnny Sinclair Dennis, Carrie's eldest son and one of the Liars. He has a problematic temper that causes tension between his mother and grandfather.
Quinn LeBlanc as young Johnny
David Morse as Harris Sinclair, the patriarch of the Sinclairs who owns the Clairmont House on his private island known as Beechwood Island. He holds his vast fortune over his daughters' heads to keep them in line and shape them into being his ideal heirs.
Josh Dallas (season 2) as middle aged Harris Sinclair.
Peyton List as middle aged Tipper Taft Sinclair (season 2), Harris's wife and the matriarch of the Sinclairs.
Dempsey Bryk as Ebon (season 2; recurring season 1), a teenage water taxi driver and Mirren's love interest.
Costa D'Angelo as Pfeff (season 2)
Recurring
Wendy Crewson (season 1) as old Tipper Taft Sinclair, Harris's wife and the matriarch of the Sinclairs
Tim Rozon as Daniel "Salty Dan", Beechwood's harbor service guy and Bess's lover
Dylan Bruce as Brody Sheffield, Bess's husband and Mirren's father
Production
Development
E. Lockhart's bestselling young adult novel, We Were Liars, and its prequel, Family of Liars, were optioned by My So-Called Company and Universal Television in July 2022. That December, it was announced that Amazon MGM Studios was developing a television series based on the novel, and the project received a series order in March 2023.
In March 2024, it was announced that Nzingha Stewart would direct the first episode of the series. On September 17, 2025, Amazon Prime Video renewed the series for a second season.
Casting
An open casting call for the series' four lead roles was posted on Lockhart's Instagram page on April 1, 2023. On May 30, 2024, it was announced that Emily Alyn Lind, Shubham Maheshwari, Esther McGregor, and Joseph Zada were cast as Cadence, Gat, Mirren, and Johnny, respectively.
Mamie Gummer, Caitlin FitzGerald, and Candice King were announced as cast members on March 5, 2024. David Morse, Arsher Ali, and Wendy Crewson were announced as cast members in late May 2024, but Ali was replaced by Rahul Kohli the following month.
On March 9, 2026, Dempsey Bryk was promoted to series regular for the second season. On May 7, 2026, Josh Dallas, Costa D'Angelo, Peyton List, Madison Wolfe, Parker Lepaine, and Elyssia Roorbach joined the main cast for the second season. On June 25, 2026, Riley Voelkel, Madeleine Arthur, Jaelynn Thora Brooks, Layla Douglas, Callan Potter, Aidan Shaw, Shaun Sipos and Brendon Tremblay joined the cast in recurring roles for the second season.
Filming
Principal photography began in June 2024. Filming took place in Halifax and Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, and was completed by late September 2024.
Release
The series was released on Amazon Prime Video on June 18, 2025.
Reception
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 62% approval rating based on 26 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "We Were Liars might be Succession-lite, but its juicy family dynamics mixed with psychological intrigue will leave viewers amply satisfied and quietly shattered." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 57 out of 100 based on 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average".
Reviewing the series for The Age, Kylie Northover gave a rating of 4/5 and described it "essentially a junior Succession, but there's enough adult soapiness for We Were Liars to appeal to a broad audience. Lauren Thoman of TheWrap said, "Overall, We Were Liars is a solid entry into the hazy summer melodrama canon, sitting comfortably beside other twisty, sun-soaked series like Big Little Lies and Cruel Summer."
It reached #1 on the Top 10 TV Shows on Prime Video during its month of release.