“Reasonable Doubt” stars Emayatzy Corinealdi and McKinley Freeman say their characters Jax and Lewis Stewart will portray some of the the tough realities of a marriage recovering from infidelity in Season 2.
“The fans can expect to see them really trying to work it out. They are trying to do the work, and I think that’s a fun part of the journey that the fans get to go on,” Corinealdi told TheWrap. “You get to see this couple who has been through this traumatic event still living life, still trying to figure out how it works with work, how it works personally, even in friend circles, and with children, trying to see what is going to happen next. That’s one of the gifts of the show, is being able to see that work out with this married couple, in this way that you don’t often get to see. We can’t say how it’s going to end, but you will see the work happening.”
Season 2 of the edge-of-your seat legal drama kicked off right where last season left off with it’s two-episode premiere on Thursday. But now, it’s been months since Jax was kidnapped by her client-turned-lust affair, and she’s taken up therapy in an attempt to regain her mental health and overcome PTSD. However, when she learns that her best friend is suspected of murdering her husband, she reports back to work.
To top it off, she and Lewis are also undergoing marital counseling to help them find common ground in the midst of their busy schedules, but also to alleviate the strain Jax’s affair had on their relationship.
Freeman said the couple is “trying to figure it out.”
“You ultimately get to a place where you realize, ‘I can’t figure this out on my own. What’s the best way to figure this out?’ That takes courage and it also takes some faith,” Freeman shared.
The actor went on to explain he even took up researching the mental and emotional journey a person goes through to move on from their partner stepping out of the relationship.
“A day after the strike ended, and I talked to Raamla, I was already just doing research in terms of what are the steps for someone that’s been cheated on. There’s psychological steps, phases that people go [through] and [I’m] just empowering myself with information not necessarily for scenes, but for the sake of understanding … What if something unexpected smacks you in the face and knocks you down and almost takes the person that you love? It’s not so fast, the traction to be able to move isn’t so readily available. There’s a very humbling thing about life where it beats you down to the fact where it’s like, everything that I thought was true wasn’t and how do I rebuild something that’s [not just] meaningful for me but to the family and the world that we’re trying to create.”
He continued, saying that ultimately this season of Jax and Lewis’ struggles will help viewers realize that you won’t always have all the answers to your problems in your relationship, and that’s OK.
“I think ultimately the big thing about this season is it’s a great opportunity for folks watching this show that you actually have to give yourself permission to [say], ‘What we’re doing isn’t working,’ and then give yourself the grace to [say], ‘OK, how do we move forward together?’” Freeman said. “Even if the only thing we can agree on moving forward together is, ‘OK, but moving forward together even if it’s just a step, how do we do that?’ If that’s the beginning of a 1,000-mile journey, then a step is a great start.”
“Reasonable Doubt” Season 2’s first two episodes are streaming now on Hulu.
