On April 4, 2025, Netflix released Pulse and became the latest streamer to join the battle of the medical dramas. Created by Hawaii Five-O alum Zoe Robyn, the Miami-set series takes place in the emergency room of Maguire Medical Center, where third-year resident Danny Simms (Willa Fitzgerald) is dealing with a lot. Not only is a hurricane heading toward the city, but she has just been appointed emergency medicine's new chief resident after she reported the old chief, Xander Phillips (Colin Woodell), for sexual harassment.
By the end of the 10-episode season, the short-term fates of Danny, Xander, and the residents' careers have been sealed. The same cannot be said for their tangled romantic lives heading into a possible second season. (I need to know what happens next with Sophie and Camila!) Below, read on for everything we know so far about the future of Pulse.
Has 'Pulse' been renewed for a second season?
As of Pulse's release, Netflix has not revealed what will happen with the show's future. This is business as usual, as it's very rare for the streaming giant to renew a show before its debut. Fans will have to wait for a few weeks of viewership numbers before Netflix makes a decision to renew.
When would 'Pulse' season 2 come out?
If Pulse gets a second season, viewers will likely only have a short wait between seasons. Medical dramas are traditionally quick to return, so new episodes of Pulse could be back as early as spring 2026.
What would 'Pulse' season 2 be about?
Spoilers for the Pulse finale ahead. By the end of season 1, most of Danny's immediate problems are resolved. Firstly, she still has her job, though Xander's parents pressured the hospital administration to kick her out of Maguire. The resident even earns Natalie's ( Justina Machado) respect enough to be her pick for the chief resident slot. Unfortunately, due to restructuring, Natalie will no longer be in charge of the surgery and emergency medicine departments. The new chair of the ER is attending doctor Patrick Sanchez (J.R. Ramirez), who names Sam (Jessie T. Usher) chief resident instead.
With the administrative switch-up, Natalie and Xander—who's set to become ER's newest attending and doesn't get along with his new boss Patrick—will have their hands full in the new season. They may even become allies as Natalie deals with changes in the trauma center she helped build. There's also the chance that besties Sam and Danny may end up at odds again in a new season since they had both been going after the chief resident spot all season.
As for Danny and Xander, the will-they-won't-they couple end the season with their healthiest dynamic yet, even if they aren't currently together. Xander comes clean to both Danny and the hospital board about what happened at Kennedy, and he finally apologizes to Danny for ignoring their power differential when they were dating. They also both admit that they still love each other, but seeing as he's even more of her boss as attending, continuing their romance doesn't seem to be an option by the end of the season 1 finale.
Speaking to Tudum, Pulse co-showrunner Carlton Cuse highlighted the questions facing Xander and Danny by the end of the season. "We see how much they care about each other, but what’s the path forward? Danny is still going to be a resident. Xander is now her boss again in a different iteration as an attending," he said. "Our hope is that the audience really cares about these two people and about their relationship with each other."
Meanwhile, actor Colin Woodell pointed out that Danny and Xander's love is "real." He added, "They’re both two characters who want to be good partners to each other. But they also have a lot of work to do on themselves. Unfortunately, both of them need to figure some stuff out on their own first before they’re really available for the other."
