Movies - TV
Ted Lasso's Writers Knew The Season 2 Backlash Was Coming
By MICHAEL BOYLE
While Season 1 of “Ted Lasso” was almost universally hailed as a fantastic opening that showed the power of Ted’s optimism, the following season didn’t receive quite the same praise as it took a more complicated approach that explored the limits of his positivity. However, showrunner Bill Lawrence and his writing team knew there would be some blowback.
Lawrence shared, “I think it’s just part of the game ... if you’re writing and doing shows completely based on the response you’re hoping you’re gonna get, you’re not going to succeed because you’re gonna be surprised both positively and negatively about it.” His advice comes from running “Scrubs,” which featured a Season 2 that most fans today agree was pretty strong.
It’s difficult to imagine the “Ted Lasso” characters as they were in Season 1 after seeing the personal growth each has gone through, with the exception of Nate’s dark turn, which sets up the show’s climactic conclusion. While controversial, Lawrence explained, “We mapped out a three-season story. This specific story, we mapped out the beginning, the middle and the end of it. We aren’t veering from that.”