Taylor Sheridan’s hit Yellowstone spin-off, Marshals, is finally back, and to celebrate the highly anticipated sophomore season, star Ash Santos dropped by Decider’s Midtown Manhattan studio to tease some exciting developments ahead.
While chatting about Andrea Cruz’s first three episodes, Santos confirmed that Season 2 will dive much deeper into character dynamics, pasts, and personal lives. Not to mention, exciting new cast members, romantic relationships, a change of scenery, and more surprises await.
As Cruz looks inward and unpacks trauma related to the Clegg kidnapping, Garrett’s death, and Cal’s (Logan Marshall-Green) cancer journey, she’ll also be investigating her father’s death and learn some shocking secrets.
“Someone comes up to her at a certain point and says something because they knew the precinct that her father worked in, and it unearths all of this information that she didn’t know before,” Santos told DECIDER. “As she starts digging into her father’s murder, she finds that there was an entire situation she had no idea about. He was almost leading a double life. It ends up taking her to New York, where she really feels a desperate need to try and get answers and uncover this part of her life that has affected her so much.”
“For the fans, I think it’ll be really cool for them to see Dre go back to New York,” Santos said, revealing that her character won’t be flying solo in her quest for answers on the East Coast. That’s right, folks. Kayce Dutton (Luke Grimes) is headed to Brooklyn!
“The other day we were filming this scene on the water, and we’re looking at the Manhattan skyline in Dumbo under the Brooklyn Bridge, and it’s so beautiful. It was an emotional scene. Then afterwards, Luke’s assistant was like, ‘Is it hard for you to cry?’ I was like, ‘With this? No, because I almost feel like there are parts of me where I just am her.’ The separation isn’t really there. So yeah, it’s interesting,” Santos said, teasing that the trip will bring Dre and Kayce closer.
“She ends up having a moment of deep vulnerability where she finally allows herself to cry and process the death of her father. We didn’t see her cry at his funeral, so we finally see her cry, and it’s in the arms of a certain person,” Santos teased. “It’s really beautiful that she was able to lean on them and feel so safe and seen in that moment to even open up in that way, so I think the fans will really love that.”
While Yellowstone fans were shocked by Monica’s (Kelsey Asbille) death in Marshals and mourned the character alongside Kayce and Tate (Brecken Merrill) in Season 1, viewers also sensed a spark between Kayce and Andrea and have been rooting for a romance between them, which surprised the stars.
“It did surprise me when I first signed on to the project. I didn’t even realize that was brewing or anything. I think that for Kayce, when they decided to kill Monica off like that, there had to be so much care with that storyline because they were the heart of Yellowstone,” Santos reflected. “To now have him move on with his life, it has to be done with such specific timing and with so much attention and care. Watching them really connect — they both lost their fathers, and there’s such a safety that Andrea feels with Kayce. It’s unlike any person she’s ever met. She also feels deeply protected by him.”
While we’re not sure if the two will explore their feelings for each other in Season 2, Santos assures DECIDER that there will be progress in the romance department for both characters.
“There will be developments on both fronts, both for Kayce and Andrea. Two people come in and catch the other one’s eye,” she confirmed. That said, it sounds like the friends will still have their eyes on each other… “There is a really interesting moment in the bar at the end of a certain episode where they’re each with their respective partners and just trying to figure out, ‘What is this? What’s here?’”
Marque Richardson is one of the fresh faces joining Marshals Season 2 as Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Barnes, and Santos confirmed, “He will definitely cross paths with Dre.”
“I was really excited about having him join, because I loved him in Dear White People. I think he’s an incredible actor, and it’s so fun having him in this world,” she explained. “We had a lot of fun with him and Kayce because they’re so different. At one point, Marque’s character says, ‘Oh, I rode at Georgetown, and Kayce is like [ugh]. So it’s fun to play with. We’re so happy that he’s been with us.”
While we’re not sure who will be catching Kayce’s eye after Dolly’s (Ellyn Jameson) death, we do know Yellowstone star Jefferson White is making his triumphant return as Jimmy Hurdstrom, and his presence on set has been delightful.
“I only know him as Jimmy, and similar to Luke, he’s so different from his character. He is such a great actor. Jefferson is so sweet and vivacious, and he brings a really bubbly energy to set. He’s always happy, and seeing him and Luke working together, they have such a beautiful relationship on camera,” Dre shared. “It’s been a lot of fun for us to have him; we were so honored that he joined the show. And I think for the fans, Jimmy was such an integral piece of Yellowstone, and being able to see him come on to Marshals now in that capacity.”
Since Marshals Season 2’s trailer showed brief footage of a young man staring in the mirror with the ranch’s signature Y brand on his chest, it sounds like Marshals will be confronting Kayce’s Yellowstone past in more ways than one. Rather than introducing a new character, Santos said that scene offers a new look at an old character. “I think when that’s shown, it will feel very familiar. It’s an illumination of a backstory that’s done in a really cool way.”
At the time of our interview, Santos and the Marshals team had just finished filming Season 2, Episode 15, which she thinks “fans will absolutely love.” The episode holds a special place in her heart as well, because her daughter played a crucial role in Dre’s backstory.
“I have a 10-year-old daughter, Lawson, and an eight-year-old son named Logan. They’re just at the most fun age because they still think I’m cool. They come to set, and they’re so interested. They’ve seen every episode. Before school started, they would come on set usually every Friday, and we’d have little activities for them to do in my trailer, then they’d come hang out and watch me film,” Santos explained. “But then this whole storyline kept developing with Andrea, and we ended up going to New York. We’re gonna meet her family, her mother, and her siblings. So the producers started asking me questions about what they think my childhood home would look like. Then they needed photos of the younger version of me, and I was like, ‘Well, you know, I do have Lawson.’ They were like, ‘Oh my gosh, would she come in?’ So we literally made her look like a little ’90s kid; we put her in my childhood home set, and we took photos. In Episodes 14 and 15, it’s so sweet to me, because there are literally scenes where I’m holding a photo looking at myself, but it’s really my daughter.”
For both Dre and Santos, Season 2 is more personal, so the Marshals star can’t wait for fans to see what’s in store. “I’m really excited for the audience to see Andrea reconcile with her past and grow more into herself. She really grows up in Season 2 in a beautiful way,” she said.
For more Marshals Season 2 insights, read Part 1 of our interview with Ash Santos.
This interview was edited for length and clarity.
New episodes of Marshals Season 2 premiere Sundays on CBS with streaming on Paramount+.
