The best buddies are back and into more trouble, of course. The ridiculously entertaining new season, Hap and Leonard: Mucho Mojo, is based on the second crime novel in Joe R. Lansdale’s book series, and begins Wednesday, March 15 at 10/9c on SundanceTV. The second season finds lifelong best friends Hap Collins (James Purefoy) and Leonard Pine (Michael Kenneth Williams) mixed up in more mayhem. This outing, however, is much darker, as a child is found dead under the house Leonard’s living in.
“It’s way darker. It’s so dark, it’s creepy,” Williams says. “Last season was very explosive and action-packed and big. This one is slow and murky and dark and heavy.”
While we definitely will miss Christina Hendricks (R.I.P. Trudy) and Jimmi Simpson (his character Soldier was INSANE), there’s plenty to look forward to in this go-round. Here are a few things to know:
1. New to the series? Don’t worry.
Just like the novels, each season is a completely different adventure with the only main through line being the friendship between Hap and Leonard.
2. If there was a backstory you should know …
“Last season ends off with Hap and Leonard’s friendship incredibly strained. Trudy [Hap’s ex, who he still loved] was not a welcome addition in Leonard’s opinion,” Williams shares. “We pick up this new season and we see that tension. They’re not completely on good terms, but the love is still there, which is what drives Leonard to call Hap when they discover the body.”
3. The supporting cast is awesome, AGAIN.
Brian Dennehy, as sheriff Valentine Otis, and Irma P. Hall as MeMaw are amazing, along with Cranston Johnson who plays Detective Marvin Hanson and Tiffany Mack as attorney Florida Grange.
4. Filming this series ain’t all that easy.
“If you do not come home from a day of Hap and Leonard shooting with a little dirt under your nails, you didn’t do a good Hap and Leonard scene,” Williams says. “It’s always some sort of dirt or blood or something under your nails, under your armpits, under a few places that I probably can’t mention. It’s a hands-on kind of job.”
5. Leonard is going to show his softer side (yes, he has one)!
“We never see him care for anybody. Then, all of a sudden, this little boy comes into his life, and I think Leonard makes a decision to care for him because at the core of Leonard, that’s who he is.”
Hap and Leonard: Mucho Mojo airs on SundanceTV Wednesdays beginning March 15 at 10/9c.
