Sarah Shahi promised that Paradise fans can look forward to more onscreen twists and turns when the hit Hulu series returns for season 2.
“It is a roller-coaster ride. [Creator Dan Fogelman] is just so good at taking the audience and pulling the rug out from underneath them,” Shahi, 45, teased in her Us Weekly digital cover story about her upcoming book, Life Is Lifey: The A to Z’s on Navigating Life’s Messy Middle. “Just when you think you know what’s happening, [something surprising happens], and then you’re like, ‘Oh, my God. I didn’t even see that coming.’”
Shahi is “excited” for new episodes to start airing on February 23 after having to remain so tight-lipped about the show’s return.
“It feels great. I am fond of all the jobs that I’ve been on for various different reasons, but it feels good to be on something that people like. When the love is that high, it just really gives you an extra pep in your step,” she noted. “Driving into work in the mornings, it feels really good.”
The actress, who plays psychotherapist and grief specialist Gabriela, praised Fogelman’s vision, adding, “Dan is such an incredible writer, and the thing that I love about him is that he’s an even better human. I’m like, ‘How is that possible?’ Writing is his superpower between working on his new NFL show, Paradise and Only Murders in the Building. He’s just an incredible human.”
Shahi continued: “The thing that I realized with working with people that are very talented is there is a level of confidence in their work. If one of us as actors felt like this line needed to change or we have a question about something, he takes the time to listen. He’s not precious about things. It’s been really nice to feel that creative freedom and to feel like you have a real seat at the table.”
After returning to film season 2, Shahi appreciated the opportunity to build out her character more, adding, “It just helps fill in the lines. A lot of times when I’m breaking a character down or I’m looking at something, I like to play what I don’t know. Perfect people are boring. I look for the crack in the veneer, and it just requires a lot of conversations as well with the director and with the writer to make sure the things that I’m piecing together go with the overall story. It does require a lot of conversations and building something together — and that’s what Dan has allowed.”
Hulu’s political thriller Paradise, which premiered in January 2025, took the internet by storm as viewers theorized about the various plot twists. Fogelman’s hit series initially appeared to be set in a serene and wealthy community forced to face the realities of a shocking murder. In typical Fogelman fashion, however, there was a twist at the end of the premiere, when Paradise was revealed to be an underground bunker housing the world’s most prominent individuals after an apocalyptic event destroyed the rest of humanity.
Paradise is a project Shahi is most proud of after revealing in Life Is Lifey, which is out on January 27, that she previously turned down work on network TV for a year.
“I was miserable on network television shows. I would go to work and it felt like there was a piece missing from my soul,” she told Us about the hiatus before booking her dream role as Billie Connelly on 2021’s Sex/Life. “I had to really pick myself up and trust my gut and know that I was capable of so much more if I just gave myself the opportunity.”
Shahi acknowledged the challenges that stemmed from that choice.
“My reps were not happy with the decision. I was making good money as a network actress, and I really took a chance on myself and was like, ‘You know what? It’s OK to sit on the sidelines for a while, to not make any money, because I trust that it’ll come back around,’” she recalled. “And it did, but yeah, it was hard. I had a lot of people in my ear telling me I was making a mistake.”
Life Is Lifey touches not only on Shahi’s career ups and downs but changes in her personal life as well. Shahi intentionally chose to use the lessons she learned as a way to help others going through similar issues.
“I really hope that people have the courage to live their lives as truthfully as they can. That’s literally what I want. I really want people to have the guts to live authentically and to not worry about what people think,” she shared. “I wrote this book to heal myself. I never expected it to make the splash that it’s making. But my point in writing it is, there was so much lightness that came from me finally doing me that I would love for other people to experience that same kind of feeling.”
Paradise premieres February 23 on Hulu with new episodes every Monday. Life Is Lifey: The A to Z’s on Navigating Life’s Messy Middle hits bookshelves on January 27.
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