Spoilers ahead for the Season 2 finale of The Gifted on Fox, called "oMens."
The second season of The Gifted has come to an end, and the ratings in Season 2 haven't been encouraging about the chances for a Season 3. If the Season 2 finale does turn out to be the series finale, then at least fans can say that the show went out with quite a bang, as it killed off the character played by the top-billed actor in a spectacular and heartbreaking plot twist. Reed has been killed off.
He died as part of a desperate final attempt to stop Reeva from creating the mutant nation through her twisted ways. The Strucker siblings were kidnapped and forced by the Frost Siblings to destroy a building, and it took a lot out of them. They only managed to escape because Esme wasn't on board with the other two Frost Sisters, and she hesitated long enough (thanks to Lorna's intervention) for her two sisters to be taken down.
That left Reed, Caitlin, Marcos, and Lorna to go after Reeva. The group was pinned down under fire in the parking garage, with little hope of even getting to Reeva, let alone taking her down. Reed realized that the only way to win would be for him to sacrifice himself. He'd been struggling for a while with containing his powers; his plan was to make it up to Reeva and then allow his powers to explode out of him, killing her and any minions with her.
Unfortunately, that also meant killing him. Reed's mission was a success insofar as Reeva is dead, along with her cause. He just had to die for it to happen, and his family was left to mourn. Stephen Moyer, who played Reed on The Gifted, explained why Reed was killed off, and the reasons may surprise you. He said this:
Well, I’ve got 6-year-old twins, and older kids who are 16 and 19. When I went off to do True Blood, I was off for a long while, and that worked out great, but last year, I was away in Atlanta and I was thinking, 'This is a long time to be away from my little people.' The second time around this year, I missed a lot of firsts: I missed their first concert, their first day of school, their first day of soccer, and it was kind of hitting me. I knew that they were looking for a big death at the end of season 2, so Matt [Nix, The Gifted’s showrunner] and I talked about the possibility of it being me. It was great for the show because they were able to do something big, and I don’t think people will be expecting me to go. But also I love my gang, I love the cast. I’ve had an amazing time on the show. I adore Atlanta, but truthfully it was really about [how] seven months is a long time to be away, and I felt this was a really cool way to bring the character to a satisfying, massive ending.
The Gifted was looking to deliver a big death in the Season 2 finale, and Stephen Moyer wanted to spend more time with his family, who did not live near set in Atlanta. According to Moyer's comments to EW, it was a matter of allowing the show to do something big and undoubtedly surprising to a lot of viewers while also accommodating his desire to not miss more firsts from his kids.
It will likely be sad to watch the Strucker family carry on without him in the event that The Gifted scores a third season, but can even the most diehard fans blame Stephen Moyer for wanting to spend more time with his family? Moyer clearly has nothing but fond feelings for the show and the people who worked on it with him.
Perhaps that means he could come back somehow! "oMens" featured him in flashbacks as well as in the present. Maybe flashbacks of the Strucker kids or Caitlin could feature Stephen Moyer as a guest star. We shouldn't get ahead of ourselves, though. There's still no saying if Fox will give The Gifted another season, and The Gifted isn't the only Fox series with an uncertain future at this point.
If The Gifted does return for Season 3, the Season 2 finale did set up a way for the action to pick up. Blink returned and revealed that the defeat of Reeva didn't mean a happily-ever-after for mutants everywhere. She opened up a portal to show the rest of the good guys that there's a world on fire on the other side, and she needs everyone to come with her and help.
The future is quite uncertain. Fox is already saying goodbye to another comics-based TV show this year, although it's difficult to put Gotham and The Gifted in the same category. Honestly, it's kind of difficult to put any show in the same category as the bonkers Gotham. The Gifted is also the only place on the small screen to get an X-Men fix, if we're not counting Legion on FX.
Even though Legion will introduce Professor X and likely incorporate more nods to that legendary character's activities, I highly doubt that it could possibly go as far into X-Men territory as The Gifted before it ends. Is the end nigh for The Gifted, as it is for Legion and Gotham? Or will the show continue and jump into whatever mission Blink has for the rest of the heroes?
Will The Gifted get the chance to explore this cliffhanger? Only time will tell. The show could almost get a reboot of sorts in Season 3, with the death of Reed as well as Reeva and two of the three Frost Sisters. If you're a fan, the time is now to start crossing your fingers for a renewal. If you're in the market for some new shows now that The Gifted is over for now, swing by our midseason TV premiere schedule.
