Since its premiere, ABC’s High Potential has become a resounding success. The series, starring Kaitlin Olson, follows the story of Morgan, a single mother with an IQ of 160 who goes from being a cleaner at the Los Angeles Police Department to a consultant in the Major Crimes division. The combination of drama and comedy has won over the audience, consolidating the series as one of the most watched on the network.
Since its first episode, High Potential has generated impressive numbers: the pilot accumulated close to 30 million viewers across all platforms, becoming ABC‘s most successful premiere in years. In addition, the episode aired on January 7, 2025 reached 12.9 million viewers after seven days, marking the highest audience for an ABC drama in more than four years.
Given this success, ABC confirmed in January 2025 the renewal of the series for a second season. Although it has not yet been announced how many episodes it will have, it’s expected to exceed the 13 chapters of the first installment. Production will continue under the direction of Drew Goddard and Todd Harthan, with Olson also serving as a executive producer.
MORE: High Potential Season 2, Episode 1 Preview: ‘Pawns’
The Cast:
Kaitlin Olson will return as Morgan and, along with her, most of the main cast of the show. That includes Daniel Sunjata as Adam Karadec, Javicia Leslie as Daphne Forrester, Deniz Akdeniz as Oz Osman, Judy Reyes as Selena Soto, and Amirah J as Morgan’s daughter Ava, and Matthew Lamb as Morgan’s son Elliot. Also Steve Howey is joining the cast as a new series regular. And, due to the revelations of the season finale, there are sure to be some key additions to the cast, but none have yet been announced.
The Plot:
The season finale gave us a little hint by introducing a criminal who likes to play games with the police, played by David Giuntoli. Based on what we saw in episode 13, this criminal is keeping an eye on Morgan and promised to come back for a one-on-one against her. So we can count on this game being one that is going to be addressed in season 2. After all, the team has to manage to catch him.
In addition to this, of course, we have Roman. In the season finale, Karadec revealed to Morgan that Roman was alive. Now, the show has to deal with explaining to us how and why. In an interview with US Weekly, Todd Harthan, showrunner, noted that he and Kaitlin Olson have started talking about who could play Morgan’s husband. “Roman is a really important and surprising piece of casting,” he said. “I fantasize about who it could be, but I haven’t focused on one person yet.” With Roman entering the fray for the second season, there will be an “in-depth mystery” surrounding the character.
Therefore, Roman’s storyline is confirmed for High Potential season 2. Also, we can’t forget about the relationship between Morgan and Karadec. The last episode brought them closer than ever and it’s safe to say that we’re going to be playing with this dynamic between them throughout the next season.
MORE: Here’s Why Morgan and Karadec of ‘High Potential’ Need to Happen — But Not Yet
The Promo:
Here’s the trailer for Season 2:
In the trailer, Morgan is about to return to work, but on the way there, she hears someone screaming. That’s the beginning of an investigation that leads Morgan to David. The game-loving serial killer is back. However, the team is reluctant to believe Morgan’s intuition. But she knows it’s him. From the way he acts, the games he plays… and because she’ll never forget his face.
In the end, they manage to come face to face. Morgan knows he’s threatening her family, but she’s going to protect them, no matter what. However, what if it’s not just her family that’s in danger? Everyone on the team has become important to her and is therefore a potential target. And Morgan knows she can’t protect them all, no matter how hard she tries.
Amidst all of this, Morgan seems to have accepted the truth that Roman is alive. She tells Ava, and while this reaffirms her belief that her father abandoned them, Morgan’s faith that there must be an explanation for everything keeps her believing that everything may not be as it seems. And it’s mainly because of her, because of Ava, that Morgan tells the others about Roman and they begin to search for him.
As for Morgan and Karadec, well, they continue that push-pull relationship we love so much, and it looks like we’ll get a lot of that in the new episodes. At the end of the trailer, we get our first glimpse of the new captain in action. And, if the first encounter with Morgan is any indication, their relationship is going to be quite… curious.
Key Art and Photos:
Good news! We already have the key art and promotional photos of Season 2.
Release Date:
High Potential season 2 will premiere on September 16, 2025 on ABC.
High Potential Season 1 aired Tuesdays at 9 pm on ABC.
YES I’M EXTREMELY EXCITED!!! I CAN’T WAIT FOR IT TO COME BACK!!! I LOVE THIS SHOW!!! ONE OF THE BEST SHOWS EVER ON TV!!! FANTASTIC STORY LINES!!! FANTASTIC CAST!!! FANTASTIC CHARACTERS!!! FANTASTIC SHOW!!! UNTIL THE NEW SEASON I WILL JUST HAVE TO WATCH THE FIRST SEASON!!!
I love this show! Can hardly wait until September and just wish it was sooner, like this Tuesday! I will have withdrawals. Best show in years, love all the characters especially Morgan!!!
In the meantime, Season 4 for the original French series that High Potential is based on (“HIP”) just dropped on Hulu. Word is that HIP will conclude after Season 5. But, all 4 seasons that have aired in Europe are now available on Hulu (Season 4 aired in Europe starting last May, so it was a long wait before it became available in the US).
The early High Potential episodes hewed very closely to the French series, but the Morgan character is actually quite restrained compared to her French counterpart Morgane. And the plot arcs for High Potential have started to deviate a lot from HIP. Remains to be seen how High Potential will resolve the Roman plot line. I thought the resolution to that story arc on HIP was weak.
HIP has played up the “will they or won’t they” line between Morgane and Karadec a lot more, and there’s more tension between Morgane and the character equivalents for Soto, Oz, and Daphne. The overarching plot threads starting in Season 3 (especially the cliffhanger leading into Season 4) took HIP in a direction that I really hope High Potential doesn’t follow.
Compared to HIP, High Potential is a lot more toned down and the characters generally get along (for now). Some of it works better, but there are times that I wish High Potential would take more chances and push the envelope a bit more.