[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for the Watson Season 1 finale “Your Life’s Work, Part 2.”]
Watson started the collection seemingly killing off each the newbie sleuth Sherlock Holmes and the villain James Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls, with the titular physician (Morris Chestnut) unable to avoid wasting the previous, his pal. The 2-part finale lastly introduced Watson and Moriarty face-to-face — and ended lethal for certainly one of them.
Resulting from Moriarty’s interference, the medical doctors solely had one dose of treatment to avoid wasting one of many twins, Adam and Stephens (Peter Mark Kendall), after the villain’s virus felled each. However Watson then manipulated Moriarty to pressure him handy over what was wanted to avoid wasting the opposite (Stephens), after Ingrid (Eve Harlow) approached him concerning the villain going to her. (He blackmailed her after discovering she’d killed her abusive father as a teen.) Each twins survived, and Stephens and Sasha (Inga Schlingmann) even acquired collectively. However Watson’s manner of getting that treatment was to make use of his DNA in opposition to him from when he visited the clinic after which met with Ingrid. Moriarty arrived, blind, and for his treatment, Watson wanted the one for Stephens. However ultimately, Watson revealed, as Moriarty lay in a hospital mattress, his treatment didn’t work in addition to he’d hoped, and he sat with the villain as he died. A two-week time soar revealed that Watson had turn out to be concerned with the pediatric oncologist, Laila (Tika Sumpter), he met whereas treating Kacey Rohl‘s daughter.
Beneath, govt producer Craig Sweeny breaks down that finale, reveals if we’ll see Randall Park once more, explains the pivot for Sasha and Stephens, and extra. (Plus, learn Morris Chestnut’s deep dive of the ultimate and hopes for Season 2 right here.)
Watson primarily killing Moriarty —to begin with, is Moriarty actually useless?
Craig Sweeny: Sure.
Discuss concerning the resolution to try this.
Effectively, thanks for not utilizing the phrase killing him off, as a result of that all the time looks like, oh, you probably did it for glib causes. You wish to create an issue on your character for which there’s just one manner out. And we didn’t begin the season going, “Oh, Moriarty goes to die on the finish of the season.” However we created this constellation of circumstances the place it doesn’t matter what occurred, it doesn’t matter what they did with him, even when they put him in a lockdown jail in Colorado the place there’s no contact with anyone, he nonetheless has this trove of DNA someplace that will permit him to do to primarily anyone on the earth what he did to Adam and Stephens. And so I consider that Watson actually approached that from a perspective of doing the least hurt and regardless that it upended and that call can have numerous ramifications on the character going ahead, I don’t suppose even provided that he would change what he did as a result of it was a query of, how do I decrease the harm from this example?
Sergei Bachlakov / CBS
What are you able to say about how Watson goes to be coping with that?
It actually challenges his conception of who he’s and what he’s able to. And I believe you’ll see it notably within the season premiere. We’re doing numerous new narrative stuff in Season 2. It’s not all about trying again on what occurred. However I believe he does enter the season with a way that I may not know myself in addition to I believed I did, regardless that he in all probability wouldn’t do it in another way. I believe he’s actually shaken and rattled by it and it’s affecting the best way he’s coping with the individuals round him.
You had mentioned that you just didn’t know from the start that you just’d have Moriarty die on the finish of the season. At what level through the season did you work that out?
Comparatively early. I’m considering so much as a result of we did a so-called mini room beforehand, after which we gathered the writers. So there are virtually like two variations of Season 1. Once we acquired into the plot mechanics, I might say inside the first few weeks of gathering the room, we dedicated to that alternative.
What did you wish to do with that scene within the hospital room with Watson staying with Moriarty after which taking that second after he’s useless?
I imply, I wished, primarily, to offer a extremely satisfying head-to-head between these two characters that hopefully the audiences actually wished. And to disclose the selection Watson made, but additionally present him wrestle with it, and to hopefully create our personal iconic second inside the prolonged Conan Doyle universe. You’ll be able to’t actually sit down and say, I’m going to put in writing an iconic second, nevertheless it’s a confrontation. Effectively, I assume what I actually like about that scene is it’s a confrontation that’s additionally actually intimate, between a health care provider and a affected person, and Watson capabilities within the scene as each Moriarty’s interrogator and his physician. He stays with him, he sits with him, he holds his hand whereas he dies. So it’s these contrasts, I believe, that make it a scene that works so properly for me. And naturally, the nice performances from Randall and Morris.
It was such an excellent scene. May we see Moriarty in Season 2 haunting Watson?
I undoubtedly wouldn’t rule it out. I imply, undoubtedly the act will hang-out Watson and also you’d be a idiot to say, I might by no means permit Randall Park to behave in our present. I imply, I might like to see him once more.
I’m so glad that you just solid him as a result of it’s so completely different than what we’re used to seeing him play.
Thanks. Yeah, it’s been rewarding to see individuals coming round to that opinion. That was why it was so interesting to me as a result of he was precisely, it’s the final word casting in opposition to sort. So if that’s working for viewers, I really like that. That’s nice. That was what made it actually enjoyable to attempt to sort out.
So the two-week time soar reveals issues are going properly for Watson and Laila. So what are you able to say about that relationship and what’s it about Laila that Watson could also be prepared to maneuver on from Mary (Rochelle Aytes)?
The occasions of the finale are type of relationship accelerants on a number of fronts. I believe we created these circumstances the place all these feelings had been so near the floor for everyone and also you additionally get to see what persons are like in these moments the place you’re making actually life-altering selections. You reveal who you’re, who you’re at your core. And so I believe Watson, due to the occasions of the finale, had this opportunity to see that is a unprecedented individual, and he was extra open to it than he may in any other case have been. And I believe when Mary type of nudged him in that route, it additionally mentioned one thing to him about, oh, possibly we have to proceed to work on defining what precisely that is, nevertheless it’s not transferring in direction of what I may need hoped or thought.
Sergei Bachlakov / CBS
However it does look like each time there’s a scene with Mary and Watson, there’s that undercurrent of what they may presumably have once more. So how are you approaching that going ahead?
Effectively, it’s a time-honored TV writing drawback when you might have performers with chemistry. We’re engaged on methods to kind of take a look at that relationship going ahead and to place Watson and Mary in circumstances the place they’re pressured to make selections that outline what it’s to every of them, who they are often for one another. You realize what we do all the time attempt to strategy it like everyone is an grownup with jobs they love and never have characters act in soapy methods, and we’ll proceed to take that strategy, however they are surely going to must outline who they’re to one another in a extra significant manner in Season 2. And that’s going to essentially be positioned below a profound problem in that season as properly.
And I believe they’re additionally going to face the problem of, there’s undeniably love there between these characters. What sort of find it irresistible is, I don’t suppose they know but, however to the opposite individuals of their lives, what does that imply? It’s one factor to say, I was married, however then to say I was married, and likewise she works the place I work. I was married and likewise she works the place I work and we speak day by day. I was married and likewise she works the place I work and we speak day by day and we’re in a homicide conspiracy collectively. I imply, they’re very, very bonded to one another and that’s going to be a problem actually for the those who they attempt to convey into their lives as properly.
So Watson packs up the All the time and All over the place shirt into the Holmes field that he places below the mattress. Is that closing the chapter not less than for now on that a part of his story?
It’s not closing the chapter on the affect of Holmes in Watson’s life and on the presence of parts of the story of the present. We’re undoubtedly not attempting to say like we’re simply a health care provider present, not that there’s something incorrect with simply a health care provider present. However the Sherlockian parts will proceed on within the present. It’s closing the field that he opened within the premiere —there’s very a lot opened this open query of I upended my life by occurring this journey to catch Moriarty and it failed and I misplaced my greatest pal in doing it. And he has created a brand new ending to that story, and that’s what that second on the finish of the finale symbolizes.
Now that you just’ve seemingly taken Moriarty off the board, will the following villain be somebody from Sherlock Holmes cannon or somebody new? As a result of I’m considering Culverton Smith, Charles Augustus Milverton, these might be actually attention-grabbing characters to usher in.
Sure. So what I like about our plan in Season 2 is that we’re undoubtedly not saying that no extra villains from the Holmes universe seem, however we’re making a paradigm that features Conan Doyle’s world with out saying the premise is all the time what villain seems this 12 months. So there’s a actually sturdy Holmesian storyline, however our plan is to not say, oh, that is Gruner or Milverton. To not say that we gained’t do this in time, however we wished to kind of open up the paradigm of a brand new type of storytelling inside that universe in Season 2. In order that’s our strategy there.
Stephens says he can’t work with Ingrid anymore, and he or she packs up her stuff. Initially, she did seemingly select the Sherlock facet or not less than the not-Moriarty facet of which manner she’d find yourself. However might dropping her job on the clinic change that? What would you say about which facet she’s on on the finish of the finale?
It’s a nice query. I believe she has an excellent argument. I imply, the character will proceed on within the present, but when I had been her, I might say to Watson, your large query was, am I extra like Holmes or am I extra like Moriarty? And I answered that for you and also you fired me, center finger up. There’s an argument that she might be very upset. That mentioned, the place that makes her land, I believe the query I wish to discover with Ingrid in Season 2 is can this character change? When she does one thing that seems to be unselfish, can anyone together with her analysis, is that truly as a result of they’ve modified at their core? Or is it only a type of masking? And we’re going to dive actually deeply into that query as Ingrid makes an attempt to reply for herself, can I truly be the type of individual I appear to be through the finale when she was selecting the Holmes facet.
Will Watson ever belief Shinwell (Ritchie Coster) like he used to?
I don’t suppose he ever can belief him like he used to, however I do suppose he can come to a working lodging with what occurred. It clearly wouldn’t have been doable to try this with out Shinwell’s extraordinary willingness to sacrifice himself. I imply, Shinwell actually proved — he had his causes to do what he did, not that it excuses it, however then he readily acknowledged his faults and was prepared to do something in any respect to make up for them. And so I believe while you’ve dedicated a incorrect, even a profound incorrect, and also you attempt to deal with it by beginning in that place of absolute humility, sure, I do suppose there’s a model of that friendship that may proceed.
Stephens and Sasha might have simply been a gradual burn over multiple season. Why not do this?
That’s an ideal query. A part of it’s you get caught up within the accelerant occasions of the finale. It felt like the best alternative. It felt like they had been pressured to confront who they might be for one another on this actually profound manner. And so it felt true. However yeah, it was an acceleration on our half too, past what our unique plans had been.
So that they had been initially going to be like a gradual burn for a number of seasons?
Yeah, it’s not like we ever signed a contract that mentioned that, however we first have the concept, it’s like, yeah, these characters appear fairly far aside they usually have numerous studying to do to be the very best variations of themselves, and that’s while you would need them to get collectively. However we kind of acquired there faster than we thought.
Is everybody going to be again in the identical capability as collection regulars?
Sure, you will note everyone again.
Are there any Sherlock Holmes characters that you just’ll be introducing in Season 2 that you may discuss? Will we see Gregson after you simply talked about Gregson as a personality?
There can be, sure. However I don’t wish to do any reveals simply but. This isn’t a reveal, however I’m excited that we now have, I actually love the performer who performs Lestrade on our present, and I’m excited to discover that relationship extra in Season 2.
Oh, that was so enjoyable.
Yeah, she actually drew out the humorous facet of Morris. They had been simply such a delight to observe collectively. That was enjoyable to see.
Would Stephens and Adam have been capable of get to the higher place they’re in by the top of the finale if not for what they had been put via?
No, I don’t suppose so. There may’ve been one other excessive occasion which may have gotten us there, however no, I believe one thing of this magnitude was type of referred to as for.
What else are you able to tease about Season 2?
Hopefully, our intention is to create a extremely ingenious tackle how to attract the Sherlock universe into the present that goes deep into Watson’s character. I believe you’re going to see a profound testing of the Watson and Mary relationship. We’re going to study extra about every of these characters’ backstories and their households and their historical past collectively. You’re going to see Sasha and Stephens in a shocking new mild on the very starting of the season. You’re going to see Adam pressured to confront his ambitions and his personal future on the clinic. And also you’re going to see Ingrid wrestle with the potential for if she will change. All in opposition to some nice science, I imply, hey, who doesn’t wish to watch that?
Watson, Season 2, 2026, CBS