Note: This article contains spoilers for “Cross” Season 2, Episodes 1-3.
“Cross” creator Ben Watkins couldn’t have predicted how relevant Season 2’s Jeffrey Epstein-esque mystery would be upon its premiere, saying even the show’s marketing team felt he’d predicted the future with the second chapter of his hit Prime Video series.
“They were like, ‘You guys predicted the future with this show,’” Watkins, who penned the events of Season 2 around late 2022 and early 2023, told TheWrap. “I didn’t anticipate how timely it was going to be.”
Homicide detective and forensic psychologist Alex Cross (Aldis Hodge) is back in action, and Season 2 comes full of more drama and action, new characters and some pretty wild storyline developments. The latter includes the introduction of new villain Lance Durand (Matthew Lillard), a charming executive who’s the CEO of Crestbrook Corporations, which uses inhumane practices in its operation. Though the bright-eyed businessman has an admirable goal to end world hunger through his nationwide food factories — which he hopes to expand globally — he’s part of dark society that mirrors that of Epstein’s. And there’s an entire entourage of wealthy figures in the 1% who are backing him.
As “Cross” did in Season 1, the Prime Video show explores a plethora of real-life issues this year, including child labor, labor abuse, human trafficking and more. Watkins and his writers’ room use Lance as one of the catalysts for Alex’s next finger-severing case.
Watkins said one of his goals for Season 2 was to come up with a new story and villain who would give fans the chills as much as Ryan Eggold’s Ramsey did in Season 1.
“Ramsey really landed for a lot of people, and it was going to be hard to follow that up,” Watkins said.
Ironically, James Patterson, the author of the “Cross” book series from which the series was adapted, also co-wrote “Filthy Rich: The Jeffrey Epstein Story.” He later helped turn that book into a Netflix docuseries.
While Watkins didn’t use any of “Filthy Rich” as source material and the second season isn’t entirely based on the disgraced financier’s crimes, taking down Lance’s Epstein-like crime ring became the mission for Watkins’ second catalyst, new character Luz (Jeanine Mason).
“It started with we know we’re doing a vigilante, now we have to make sure, if we’re going to do this right, we’re going to seduce the audience into rooting for this vigilante,” Watkins said. “They need a cause that we can relate to. So that was the exploitation of these minor migrant children, which I knew was a real thing, and I knew it was still existing — that became a cause that’s at the root.”
Enter Luz, the leader of a small underground group who is targeting Lance and all his insidious co-conspirators. Watkins said her introduction to viewers had to be a bloody one.
“We wanted to introduce her by having her do something really heinous, but to someone who deserves it,” Watkins explained. “And that’s when we decided, ‘OK, I’m going to have one of these pervert, pedophile-type dudes like the Epstein stuff’ — because no one’s trying to protect those guys.”
Watkins said he packed a ton of societal issues into Season 2 that Americans have their minds on, hoping it sparks further discussion as they watch the season.
“There’s a billionaire character who’s trying to impose his will on the world, but for what he thinks are good reasons, and it really gets into the wealth gap, and the outsized influence the elites have in our society, that all of us are frustrated with,” Watkins said. “Vigilanteism is an issue right now, the wealth gap is an issue right now, immigration is an issue right now. The misuse of law enforcement is an issue right now … but you wish it wasn’t.”
He continued: “There’s a part [of you that says,] ‘Hey, it would be great if somebody watched this show and said, “Oh yeah, I remember when those were problems.”‘ Instead, they’re going to say, ‘Oh my god, this is happening right now.’”
“Cross” Season 2 releases new episodes Wednesdays on Prime Video.
