Creator Emily Fox talks to ETonline about leaving questions unanswered - plus an exclusive sneak peek!
VH1’s Hindsight, the best show you're not watching, ends its ‘90s journey – and we’ve got scoop on the life-altering season ender!
“The finale finds a lot of the characters at a crossroads,” creator Emily Fox tells ETonline. “It doesn’t wrap it all up and tie it in a bow. A lot of new questions are asked – some are answered, but not all.”
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Let’s recap the season in a nutshell, shall we? After Becca (Laura Ramsey) found herself back in 1995, rocking plaid button-ups and denim cut-offs like nobody’s business, she vowed to correct her past mistakes -- none as big as mending her fractured friendship with Lolly (Sarah Goldberg). But she as we approach the finale, their bond is tested when Kevin (Steve Talley) -- Lolly’s unrequited love -- makes a move for Becca, threatening their friendship once again.
And in the exclusive sneak peek, Becca’s brother Jamie (John Patrick Amedori) finds himself in a pickle after learning that the prescription pad he stole from his father’s study -- and thousands of dollars from his illegal side business -- has suddenly gone missing. Uh oh!
Just because Becca is going by a different roadmap this time around, doesn’t mean “the outcome is necessarily better,” Fox says, “it’s just different. That’s what the show is all about. Door B is just as treacherous as Door A.”
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ETonline spoke with Fox ahead of tonight’s premiere for intel on the captivating first season that was and what’s ahead in a hypothetical sophomore run!
Hindsight has been such a refreshing surprise. Have you found that to be the common response when fans talk to you about the show?
Emily Fox: It has been a bit of a Trojan horse. The people who came to it were expecting a fun romp through the ‘90s and they weren’t necessarily expecting this emotional meditation on fate versus free will. It’s not necessarily the thing you think will be packaged in bubbly wrapping paper. Our intention was always to surprise everyone and sneak up on them – a sneak attack.
Becca begins the season thinking she can re-do her life, but that’s not proving to be the case. Was that something you wanted to point out – that life has a funny way of bringing things back around?
Fox: We didn’t set out to answer the eternal question of, is there such a thing as fate or is everything free will? We wanted to continue that dialogue and to highlight that struggle that all people have. That’s Becca’s journey in a nutshell. The whole show is an allegory for life in that you have no spirit guide, you are on your own and you have to figure it all out, including living with the consequences. This is a girl who has two sets of decisions but she still has to live with the consequences of them.
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Kevin played a major role in the break in Becca and Lolly’s relationship the first time around, yet here, she finds herself in a similar position even though she’s been attempting to circumvent a similar outcome. How does she feel about that at the moment?
Fox: The fact that Kevin’s shown up on their doorstep throws Becca for a loop because she wasn’t expecting it. Since the initial wake-up moment [in the ‘90s in the premiere], this is the biggest surprise for her. In some ways, it’s a happy surprise because she sees him again and all that love and that magnetic pull comes rushing back. At the same time, she knows this guy’s Kryptonite and the cause of her and Lolly’s big break-up – and this is also out of the original timeline. So for her to have to confront him now brings up that same question: Is this happening for a reason? Is he here for a reason?
So what’s Becca’s prerogative now?
Fox: For Becca, it’s how do I follow my heart and do the right thing -- is it possible to do both? I want to capitalize on this opportunity, this chance to do my life over again and I have the opportunity to do what I think is the moral and correct thing, but I also have the chance to do the thing that’s good for me. But, there may be emotional casualties. Her main struggle is doing what her heart wants to do without hurting anyone in the process. Up to a certain point, she’s been doing the right thing – for instance, when she broke up with Andy.
As we’re approaching the finale, Jamie’s not in a good place. Is there hope for him?
Fox: Jamie has been on this spiral toward the bottom and that’s the thing about the bottom, you eventually hit it. For Jamie that’s a pretty dark place and there are different forces that have put him there, including his self-destructive streak and the fact that Lolly, a bright spot in his life, has been beyond his grasp even though he’s clearly in love with her. What you’ll see with Jamie is there’s inevitability to his [story] – his troubles overtake him.
We have to throw in a music question here since the show does an amazing job featuring classic ‘90s jams. What was the one song that was a must to include and why?
Fox: There’s a moment at the end of episode two, where we played “Shine” by Collective Soul -- and it wasn’t even like, “Oh yes, that’s the quintessential ballad of the ‘90s!” But the minute we heard it for that particular spot -- a montage -- it reached so deep into my soul and pulled a string I didn’t know was there. It was like a full-body chill, and that was it.
What can you tell us about where we find Becca at the end of the finale? Do you leave it with an open question?
Fox: Suffice it to say, we have a very grand plan for Becca’s journey and we’re very hopeful that we’ll have a second season and that we’ll have an opportunity to explore that. But the cliffhanger is designed as a cliffhanger. It’s designed to leave some jaws dropped and [create] a lot of watercooler conversations and speculation.
Are you planning on revisiting the ‘90s one last time? Tweet us your thoughts to Philiana Ng at @insidethetube!
Hindsight airs its season finale on Wednesday at 10 p.m. on VH1.