Sweet Magnolias Season 3 Preview: Watch the First 5 Minutes - Netflix Tudum

  • Sneak Peek

    Watch the First 5 Minutes of ‘Sweet Magnolias’ Season 3

    And find out what made the cast laugh during one very serious scene.

    By Jean Bentley
    April 9, 2025

JoAnna Garcia Swisher, Heather Headley, and Brooke Elliott can’t stop giggling thinking about the first scene of Sweet Magnolias Season 3, and it all has to do with…water?

The season picks up immediately after the action of the Season 2 finale, with the whole gang returning home from the big fight at Sullivan’s that ended with Cal’s (Justin Bruening) arrest. His lawyer, Helen (Headley), bails him out, and she, Maddie (Swisher), Dana Sue (Elliott), and sous chef/Helen’s beau Erik (Dion Johnstone) bring him home.

It’s a serious scene, which you can watch above, but there’s one specific element that has stuck with the star trio ever since they filmed it. In June, Swisher, Headley, and Elliott told Tudum that they couldn’t stop laughing while watching Elliott’s character fruitlessly try to comfort her friends with glasses of water during the tense scene. For whatever reason, Swisher forcefully declined — and that became a running joke. 

Related Stories

  • Sweet Magnolias Season 5 Ending: Do Helen and Erik Get Married?
    Three women sit at an outdoor café table, smiling and chatting. The woman in the center holds a tiara above her head while the group enjoys drinks surrounded by greenery in a relaxed, friendly setting.

Hydration is important, but is it that serious? Even though no one took the proffered beverages, “the best part was that [Elliott] was still committed,” Headley said. “When she was off-camera, she didn’t even have the tray but she walked the water over to keep us in the same rhythm. So she literally picked up no water and passed it to Jo, [who] declined the water. But now we’re watching it and I see her hand Jo the water, and it’s like — ‘Why is she so mad at that water?’ ”

Somehow, said Swisher, that interaction made them all laugh “so hard.” But that’s probably because it was another funny moment between the on-screen best friends that spilled into their real-life friendships. “The guys got a little glimpse into what margarita nights are like with the three of us, and it’s just off the rails,” Swisher said. “Half the time, it’s shocking to even get through the scene.”

Unwanted beverages aside, the scene sets up the obstacles that the Magnolias will face in Season 3 — Helen and Erik need to talk, because of the whole proposal from her ex thing that no one else knows about yet; Cal’s remorseful and willing to walk away from his silent partnership in Sullivan’s to avoid damage to its reputation; and, after Dana Sue goes home, she and Ronnie (Brandon Quinn) talk about the most mysterious cliff-hanger in Season 2 — the appearance of woman whom all the Magnolias seem to know and seriously dislike. 

As soon as their daughter, Annie (Anneliese Judge), heads to bed, Dana Sue asks Ronnie, “When the hell were you going to tell me Kathy was back?”

Who’s Kathy? And why does Ronnie know her? And most importantly, what did Kathy do?! Find out when Sweet Magnolias Season 3 debuts July 20.

Related Tags

More on Sweet Magnolias

  • Sweet Magnolias Margarita Recipe: Make a Cocktail Worthy of Girls’ Night
    Creator Sheryl Anderson and Props Head Stephanie Postich teach us how.
  • Here’s how to keep track of everyone in the small town of Serenity, South Carolina.
  • See best friends Maddie, Helen, and Dana Sue visit New York in a sneak peek.
  • Showrunner Sheryl J. Anderson teases what to expect.
  • Maddie, Helen, and Dana Sue’s friendship goes far beyond Serenity.

Shop Sweet Magnolias

Go to Netflix Shop

Based on What You Watched

  • Take a walk(er) down memory lane and relive these unforgettable moments.
  • A doctor has an affair with his son’s girlfriend in this sexy British series.
  • Tobias Santelmann and Joel Kinnaman star in the Nordic noir series.
  • Skyscraper Live thrills, and Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart is a riveting survival tale.
  • Here’s everything to know about the action film from Gareth Evans. 
  • A doctor has an affair with his son’s girlfriend in this hot and heavy British series.
  • Tobias Santelmann and Joel Kinnaman star in the twisty noir thriller.
  • Viewers also pressed play on Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials and His & Hers.

Sneak Peek

  • The drama splashes to Netflix on Oct. 8. 
  • Josh Duhamel and Minka Kelly tease their characters’ reunion on July 23.
  • Joe Locke, Kit Connor, and Alice Oseman give a sneak peek at the finale film.
  • A new chapter in the saga of Little House on the Prairie. 
  • Gordon Cormier says Season 2 “is definitely a level up.”
  • A childhood flashback sets the tone for Peter’s most dangerous season yet.
  • LA’s hottest defense attorney is beginning to know how his clients feel.

Drama

  • Ella Beatty plays the infamous accused axe murderer in the series’ new season.
  • Sophie Nélisse, Roby Attal, and Francesca Reale star in Carley Fortune’s series.
  • Watch the trailer for the companion podcast, hosted by Ria Ciuffo, right now.
  • Stream Spider-Man, Ex Machina, Home Improvement, and more before the month ends.
  • Stream The Whisper Man, The Last House, the final season of Outer Banks, and more.
  • Plus Badly in Love, Big Chicken: A Fast Food Conspiracy, Speed, Annie, and more.
  • Connor Swindells, Patrick J. Adams, and Merritt Wever star in the series.
  • “It was the biggest crime scene the world had ever seen at that point.”

Related Videos

  • Serenity’s favorite trio — Maddie, Helen, and Dana Sue — return on June 11.
  • JoAnna Garcia Swisher, Heather Headley, and Brooke Elliott star in the series.
  • Everything you need to know before the new season.
  • Sweet Magnolias Featurette

Popular Now

  • The series returns with Josh Duhamel, Minka Kelly, and legend Patricia Clarkson.