Merry Christmas. Just in time for the holidays, Netflix has announced premiere dates for the special Christmas episode of Sense8, as well as the launch of the second season of sci-fi thriller series’ executive produced by Lana Wachowski, Grant Hill and J. Michael Straczynski. Sense8: A Christmas Special premieres globally on the streaming service Friday, December 23 at 12:01am PT. Meanwhile, Sense8 season 2 launches globally Friday, May 5 at 12:01am PT.

The two-hour Christmas special follows the central characters as they weave in and out of each other’s lives finding deeper connections, learning darker, more desperate secrets about one another and struggling to identify with more than just oneself.

Season two will pick up where season one left off as Capheus (Toby Onwumere), Kala (Tina Desai), Lito (Miguel Angel Silvestre), Nomi (Jamie Clayton), Riley (Tuppence Middleton) , Sun (Donna Bae), Will (Brian J. Smith) and Wolfgang (Max Riemelt) find themselves on the run from Whispers (Terrence Mann), forced to question their very identity. Coming together physically and mentally, they must find a way to live with, understand and protect one another against all odds.

Created by Lana and Lilly Wachowsk and J. Michael Straczynski, the first season of Sense8 premiered on Netflix in 2015.