‘Big Little Lies’ Had a Sneaky Easter Egg From the Novel

From all the secrets Ed just learned to the identity of Ziggy’s father becoming public knowledge, Big Little Lies Season 2, Episode 2 left us all with a lot to unpack. However, one throwaway line referenced a little-known story that is just as shocking as anything else in this show. Big Little Lies just nodded to how the dreamy and beautiful Celeste (Nicole Kidman) first met the type-A Madeline Martha Mackenzie (Reese Witherspoon).
Naturally, this Easter egg is dropped during a conversation between Celeste and her grieving mother-in-law Mary Louise, because all good things must be tied to Meryl Streep. That’s a law of film and television.
While cleaning up the kitchen, Celeste brings up Mary Louise’s recent fight with Madeline and encourages her to be kinder to her friend. In true Mary Louise form, she immediately shoots down that idea:

Mary Louise: I have tried, but she’s not a likable person.

Celeste: She’s been a lifeline to me. She really has, she’s a wonderful person.

Mary Louise: Yeah, well… you’re mistaken.

Celeste: Did I ever tell you that she once saved Max from drowning?

Mary Louise: Really? Huh… Where were you?
“Where were you?” is one of the most savage takedowns this series has ever delivered, digging into Celeste’s insecurities about whether or not she’s a good mother. But it’s the circumstances around this barb that are perhaps the most interesting.
This near drowning was included in Liane Moriarty’s original novel, which served as the basis for Season 1 of the series. What the show previously didn’t mention was that this near death experience was actually how Madeline and Celeste first met. In Chapter 14 Madeline reflects on how they met at a swimming class for their children. Celeste’s twin boys and Madeline’s daughter Chloe and son Fred were attending classes at the same pool. (Note: For whatever reason Madeline lost a child when she was adapted for HBO.) As Celeste daydreamed, her son fell into the water, forcing Madeline to take action:

On this particular day, Fred had been happily distracted with ice cream, and Madeline was watching Chloe have her turn floating like a starfish when she noticed there was only one twin boy standing on the platform.

“Hey!” shouted Madeline at the teacher. “Hey!”

She looked for the beautiful mother. She was standing off to the side, staring off into the distance. “Your little boy!” she screamed. People turned their heads in slow motion. The pool supervisor was nowhere to be seen.

“For fuck’s sake,” said Madeline, and she jumped straight into the water, fully dressed, stilettos and all, and pulled Max from the bottom of the pool, choking and sputtering.

The novel goes on to explain how this accident bonded them. Both mothers took their kids out of the school, and thanks to Celeste’s amazing legal skills both of them were reimbursed for the school’s fees as well as the cost of Madeline’s shoes and her dry cleaning bill. Madeline remembers this encounter as further evidence that her friend is too spacey for her own good. But as Big Little Lies lets the reader more into Celeste’s world, it becomes clear her daydreaming is a system of survival. Though it’s never mentioned explicitly in the book, it’s very possible the reason Celeste wasn’t watching her son that day was because she was figuring out how to leave her abusive husband.
That’s what’s at stake when Mary Louise says the words “Where were you?” It’s not merely a calculated question about Celeste’s parenting skills and her devotion to her family. It’s a reminder of the reason why Celeste could never be as present in her life as she wanted to be, a reminder of the source of her fear. It’s a reminder of her now dead husband Perry Wright. Even when she knows nothing about the backstory, Mary Louise is one brutal bully.
New episodes of Big Little Lies premiere on Sundays at 9/8c. 

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