The Umbrella Academy season 2 ended with the six remaining siblings coming face to face with a living Reginald Hargreeves, a new Sparrow Academy, and their dead brother Ben (played in adulthood by Justin H. Min) very much alive. Fans understandably have a lot of questions about this new timeline and, with season 3 not yet confirmed, they may be waiting a while for answers. What is known is that when the Hargreeves siblings arrive back at the Academy in 2019 after having averted yet another apocalypse, the Umbrella Academy's future was changed and their home was not how they had left it. It quickly becomes clear that the time they spent in the 1960s set off a chain of events that altered their timeline dramatically.
The point of timeline divergence most certainly occurred when, in Five’s last-ditch attempt to avoid another apocalypse and in Diego’s mission to derail JFK’s assassination, the Umbrella Academy turned to their father… some twenty-five years before they would even be born. It fast became clear that Hargreeves was disappointed by the results of his future self’s experiment not least because of their meddling in his actual plot to foil JFK's assassination. As the group sits around the restaurant table, he is seen noting down the names and abilities of his future children, expressing displeasure towards them all, and towards Diego in particular.
While Ben was present during this interaction, Klaus refused to introduce him to their father and thus his presence was unknown to Hargreeves. So, while Hargreeves knew that his adopting Luther, Diego, Allison, Klaus, Five, and Vanya would result both in his death and the end of the world, he did not know of Ben’s part in the Umbrella Academy. This could mean one of two things: Either he had no knowledge of Ben being in the Umbrella Academy, or he knew but decided to keep Ben in the Sparrow Academy because of his power and because his death at a young age exempted him from Reginald’s disappointment. It seems that the Hargreeves succeeded with his second Academy since he and Ben are both still alive in 2019.
Why Reginald Created The Sparrow Academy
Sir Reginald Hargreeves (played by Colm Feore) is an alien with an assumed human identity who gained a reputation as an eccentric billionaire after buying and adopting seven of the forty-three children who were born on the same day in 1989, to mothers who weren’t pregnant the day before. His intention was to train this select group of gifted children to become superheroes and prevent an apocalypse which he predicted would befall the world. However, since meeting the adult Hargreeves siblings in 1963 and learning both of their failure to prevent the apocalypse in 2019 and of his own death, it is clear that Reginald Hargreeves intends to change the future.
It is fair to assume that Ben is the only original Umbrella Academy member to have been brought into the Sparrow Academy since Sparrow-Ben does not seem to recognize the Umbrella Academy siblings when they first appear. Shadowy figures are visible on the balcony, but their faces are obscured and the identities of the other Sparrow Academy members therefore remain unknown. Thus, out of Reginald’s attempt to alter the trajectory of the timeline and prevent the end of the world – a mission at which the Umbrella Academy had failed miserably, at least in his eyes – was born the Sparrow Academy.
Theory #1: Reginald Didn’t Know Ben Was In The Umbrella Academy
When the siblings return to 2019, Ben is Number One and leader of the Sparrow Academy. This could suggest that Reginald had no knowledge of Ben’s part in the Umbrella Academy. While during their meeting in 1963, Ben asked Klaus to announce that he was present, Klaus refused. And while Ben attempted to forcefully possess Klaus, he did not manage to properly introduce himself to Reginald beyond a choked out “I’m… Ben” and, if anything, further damned the Umbrella Academy in their father’s eyes. And yet, what are the odds that Reginald would pick Ben for the Sparrow Academy?
It has been suggested that, of the forty-three children born gifted, some did not survive while others were abandoned or put up for adoption, and others yet (like Lila’s parents) wanted to keep their child. This could, therefore, mean that once Hargreeves had written off Luther, Diego, Allison, Klaus, Five, and Vanya, the number of children he was able to adopt was significantly reduced and thus the odds of Ben being chosen are not as slim as initially thought. Alternatively, it could be that Hargreeves could not resist adopting a child as powerful as Ben. Though the Netflix series takes significant liberties with the source material, the Reginald Hargreeves from the comics possessed a monocle with seemingly magical properties, which allowed its wearer to perceive a person’s true nature. It could, therefore, be that, with the help of the monocle, Reginald could see the babies’ potential and was inevitably drawn to Ben, powerful as he is.
Theory #2: Reginald Decided To Keep Ben In The Second Team
In season 2, episode 10, flashbacks show the Hargreeves siblings gathering for Ben’s funeral at the Academy. Reginald tells them that Ben’s death is their fault and while fans do not yet know the exact circumstances that surround Ben’s untimely death, it is clear that Hargreeves believes Ben was let down by his siblings. There's even a suggestion, in the fact that there's a statue to Ben in the Academy grounds, that he was Sir Reginald's favorite. If he had no reason to reject Ben, it would make sense that he would identify him as a strong candidate for the Academy once more after his birth.
It is nearly impossible to anticipate what Sir Reginald Hargreeves, a seemingly ageless alien with a vast intellect and unknown resources, may or may not know. It is therefore well within the realm of possibility that despite not encountering Ben in 1963, he still knew of his presence at the time or of his existence in the future at all. If it's accepted logic that Sir Reginald didn't know everything about the future, it could be that he did not view Ben as tainted and dysfunctional, unlike his adult siblings since he died before ever proving to be a disappointment. Therefore, by adopting Ben and making him Number One in the new timeline, Reginald Hargreeves could ensure that Ben did not die as a child and that his powers were still put to good use. These questions will undoubtedly be resolved in The Umbrella Academy’s (yet to be announced) third season, along with the identities of the other Academy members and the fates of Luther, Vanya, Allison, Five, Klaus, and Diego in this alternate timeline.
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