For Shanola Hampton and Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Found Season 2 has been very different from Season 1. That’s by design, of course. The Found writers threw us a curveball at the end of Season 1 by having Sir escape Gabi’s basement. And what has transpired in Season 2 has been a very different story—still centered around their dynamics, but without them getting the chance to interact the same way they did in the show’s inaugural season.
At first glance, that was a gamble. We didn’t know if it was going to work. But it did, and a lot of that credit is on the writers. But a fair bit of it is also on Hampton and Gosselaar, for making these characters interesting even in changing circumstances. Fangirlish talked to the two about that in a conversation that really showcased their bond—the banter was on point—, as well as the Sir/Gabi dynamics and what else we can expect in Season 2.
“I love that the writers were able to reinvent the wheel of a procedural in general. Then also to take this storyline of him escaping the basement. He could have stayed in that basement for three seasons. Period,” Hampton said, and if we’re being honest, that’s what we expected.
“Let me be honest, that’s what I expected,” Hampton agreed. “When they told me he was leaving [the basement] Season 1, I was like, “Well, where’s he going?” Because A, I’m never going to do the show without Mark-Paul. B, what the heck is going to happen when Gabby and Sir got to be such a huge storyline? It’s really nice to see how they were able to creatively make it work.”
Despite that, and the acknowledgment from both actors that the dynamic between Gabi and Sir is the center of the show, Hampton and Gosselaar were clear the thing between Sir and Gabi is not romantic.
“I think for those that want them to be together, want better, want more for yourselves. Let’s not fall in love with the person who kidnapped you, who’s also quite a bit older than you. That’s weird. Let’s not do that,” Hampton stated unequivocally.
She also added “The relationship is undefined. It’s definitely not romantic, but it’s chemistry and it’s a man and a woman. Of course, everybody’s minds are going to go to what they automatically go to, but it’s just not that.” This doesn’t mean their relationship isn’t something that Hampton finds interesting herself. Or that she doesn’t understand why people are intrigued. “I think that the audience has been with us a long time and they’re like, “Okay, it’s not that, but it’s still something.”
And it’s something that keeps us engaged.
Gosselaar also teased that as much as this show has been centered on Sir’s “obsession” with Gabi, there’s something to the pull she feels towards him. “Obviously, the show is the obsession of Sir. But we’re going to learn why Gabi can’t release her connection with Sir. I think that that’s why we will need many more seasons to help us tell that story.”
Count us in for that.
And what, exactly, does that mean for Sir? “I think we’ve talked about this with NK [showrunner Nkechi Okoro Carrol], that in the future we’ll see where Sir—we’ve seen his background with his mother, but how did he take this fork in the road and why? We’ll see a bit of it this season, but we’ll have to hopefully hope for more seasons to see more.”
We’ll be here, glued to our TV screens.
What did you think of our Shanola Hampton and Mark-Paul Gosselaar interview? Share with us in the comments below!
Found airs Thursdays at 10/9c on NBC.
