Nate as captain of West Ham United

Ted Lasso star Nick Mohammed hints that Nate may not get a redemption arc. Mohammed plays Nate Shelley in the Apple TV+ hit series, which focuses on the titular Ted (Jason Sudeikis) as an American college football coach who’s unexpectedly recruited to coach an English Premier League team despite having no experience with soccer.

Ted Lasso‘s season 2 finale included plenty of surprising shifts when it premiered back in October. The episode, which was titled  “Inverting the Pyramid of Greatness,” saw Roy (Brett Goldstein) and Keely (Juno Temple) make a big decision about their future as a couple. AFC Richmond, the show’s central soccer team, plays in their most important match yet and secure an all-important draw that ensures their promotion to the Premier League. But even with all those developments, it was Nate that has kept fans wondering about what Ted Lasso season 3 will look like. In a flash-forward, it’s revealed that the character has been working as a coach for Rupert (Anthony Head) and his new West Ham United team. In the months since, there have been questions about whether Nate will be redeemed after falling out with Ted and aligning with the antagonistic Rupert.

Related: Why Ted Lasso Season 3 Will Be All About Redeeming Nate

In an interview with BBC, Mohammed spoke about the “life-changing” experience of portraying Nate and shared his initial reaction to the character’s villainous turn. As it related to Nate’s future, the actor struck a note of uncertainty. While he acknowledged that, personally, he would like to see Nate redeemed, Mohammed explained why the writers of Ted Lasso may decide to go in a different direction. You can read Mohammed’s quote below.

“I genuinely don’t know. I know bits but not the details. We’ll see if Nate manages to find his way back to Richmond. But the thing with Ted Lasso is the audience are possibly expecting a redemption arc for Nate, and I’d like to see one I think because that would be nice. But equally, I could well imagine the writers thinking: ’no, we’re going to turn it on its head’, because that’s what they did in season two, playing against everyone’s expectations, so he might be the one character they don’t redeem.”

Ted, Nate and Coach Beard looking at a note in Ted Lasso

Speaking on the divisive response sparked by Ted Lasso season 2, series co-creator Bill Lawrence has said in interviews that he doesn’t understand the criticism that the show is too optimistic. Lawrence noted that, despite its categorization as a comedy, the series delves into difficult subjects such as severe depression and domestic abuse. It could be that, in the spirit of pushing back against that cheery reputation, Nate may not get the tidy heroic redo that – for example – Jamie Tartt (Phil Dunster) received early on.

It could also be the case that, much like real life, Nate isn’t fully redeemed or completely villainous. He could still display both kindness and despicableness, even to his former friends like Ted and Keely. That may not be the preferred approach, especially for fans that supported Nate early on, but it would be well within line with the character’s development over the course of two seasons. Nate has his own demons. And his redemption in Ted Lasso, or lack thereof, will have more to do with whether or not he’s prepared to confront them.

More: Ted Lasso Season 2 Backlash Explained: Why Some Fans Have Turned On The Show

Source: BBC