‘We didn’t miss a beat’: Lana Condor, Anna Cathcart back together for XO, Kitty’s new season
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Lana Condor (right) and Anna Cathcart in XO, Kitty 3.
PHOTO: NETFLIX
LOS ANGELES – Fans of the To All The Boys romantic comedy films (2018 to 2021) got a long-awaited cameo with the new season of the franchise’s spin-off XO, Kitty (2023 to present).
Netflix’s most-viewed series globally for the first week since its April 2 premiere, Season 3 sees a guest appearance by the films’ star Lana Condor.
She reprises her role as Lara Jean Song-Covey, the heroine of the teenage trilogy based on the novels of the same name by Korean-American author Jenny Han and the older sister of XO, Kitty protagonist Kitty (played by Anna Cathcart).
Lana Condor (left) and Anna Cathcart in XO, Kitty 3.
PHOTO: NETFLIX
The To All The Boys movies were a commercial and cultural success for Netflix. The first, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before (2018), became one of the streamer’s most-viewed original films ever shortly after its release and helped revive the teen romance genre.
Fans had been clamouring for Condor to appear in XO, Kitty after former co-star Noah Centineo, who played Lara Jean’s boyfriend Peter, did a Season 2 cameo.
The show revolves around Kitty’s adventures as she attends an international school in Seoul, South Korea.
In Season 3, she returns for her final year, determined to grow closer to her South Korean relatives and define her relationship with classmate-turned-crush Min Ho (Sang Heon Lee).
At a March press event in Los Angeles, Cathcart says she was just as thrilled as fans when Condor’s participation was revealed earlier that month.
“Honestly, it still feels illegal for me to talk about it, because it’s been a secret for so long,” says the 22-year-old Canadian actress of Chinese and Irish descent.
Anna Cathcart at the Academy Awards in Los Angeles on March 15.
PHOTO: REUTERS
A teenager when she worked on the To All The Boys films – where her precocious character plays matchmaker to Peter and Lara Jean – she enjoyed sharing scenes with her on-screen sister once again.
“It was the best and, honestly, nothing changed. It felt like we were 15 and 21 again, like we were back in the day shooting the movies.
“We didn’t miss a beat, and I love her so much,” says Cathcart, who also starred in the 2017 and 2018 Descendants films, a fantasy musical franchise on the Disney Channel.
She credits Condor and American actor John Corbett, who played their father in the movies, as role models.
“I learnt how to stand up for yourself and use your voice. This industry can be crazy at times, and knowing your power and how to communicate is really important, and they’ve taught me that.”
Working on this season of XO, Kitty was a happy reunion for Condor as well.
Lana Condor at a Vanity Fair party in Los Angeles on March 11.
PHOTO: AFP
“It was my first time getting to step into Anna’s world, and it was exciting to see what she’s been able to accomplish,” says the 28-year-old Vietnam-born American actress, who played the superhero Jubilee in the Marvel film X-Men: Apocalypse (2016).
“So what was the most special for me – besides just going back as my favourite character – is seeing Anna and how amazing she is.”
Another long-awaited payoff for fans is XO, Kitty finally addressing the slow-burning tension between Kitty and Min Ho, the cocky but vulnerable character who has emerged as a fan favourite and – after Kitty’s shifting affections in earlier seasons – the male romantic lead.
Anna Cathcart (left) and Sang Heon Lee in XO, Kitty 3.
PHOTO: NETFLIX
This is “probably the best season out of all three”, says the 29-year-old South Korean actor, who previously worked as a model and headlined the Filipino romance series Secret Ingredient (2024).
“Because we just worked so hard on it – and hopefully the audience will think the same,” says Lee, whose 33-year-old sister Gia Kim plays Yuri, another classmate of Kitty’s.
The ensemble cast have grown close to one another off camera, and when shooting in South Korea, Lee and the other native-born actors took the others under their wing.
The cast of XO, Kitty (from left) Sang Heon Lee, Regan Aliyah, Sasha Bhasin, Anna Cathcart, Gia Kim and Choi Min-yeong at the 2026 Unforgettable Awards on March 7, in Los Angeles, California.
PHOTO: AFP
American actress Regan Aliyah, 25, who plays student Juliana, says: “All of our Korean cast members have taught me so much. Sang Heon loves to share different foods with us and will be like, ‘Come with me here, just try it.’”
Asked about the possibility of another To All The Boys spin-off starring her and Cathcart, Condor says: “I would love it.”
And like fans, she is dying to find out what happens to Lara Jean and Peter.
“Are they still together? Have they been divorced three times? We’ll never know unless we do it.”
XO, Kitty 3 is available on Netflix.
