EXCLUSIVE: 'The Good Fight' Bosses Break Down Finale Cliffhanger and Season 2 Plans

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CBS All Access


Warning: Spoiler alert! Do not proceed if you have not watched Sunday’s finale of The Good Fight.

What’s next for The Good Fight?

CBS All Access’ first scripted series wrapped its first season on Sunday with a jam-packed finale that left several looming questions unanswered. After dutifully siding with her troubled family all season long, at the end of the finale, the feds arrived at Maia Rindell’s (Rose Leslie) doorstep to arrest her.

The twist came after her embattled father, Henry Rindell (Paul Guilfoyle), chose not to take a plea deal that would have cleared Maia and put him in jail -- instead, becoming a fugitive on the run. What does this mean for Maia?


The Good Fight
creators Robert and Michelle King jumped on the phone with ET to break down the biggest finale moments and what they’re planning for season two.

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ET: The finale ended on a cliffhanger: Maia is possibly going to jail due to her father’s escape from the law and her family’s illegal financial dealings. What’s going through her mind at that moment and will we see the immediate aftermath?


Michelle King:
We anticipate picking up right where we left off next season. We’re not planning [a time jump].

Robert King:
With regards to Maia’s state of mind, Maia has to face the reality that her family is not good. She’s somebody who always felt warm feelings towards her family and now she’s seeing there was an element of “doggy dog” in her relationship with her family. Her dad was guilty and not only that, he ran out on her. It’s about rebuilding family. She’s young enough where she can [rebuild] family somewhere else.


Is the plan to revisit Maia’s father, Henry, in season two and see where he’s been, what he’s been up to?


Michelle:
Those are great questions. We love Paul Guilfoyle and we love what he’s done with the character and we’re still trying to decide that as we build the season.

Robert:
The intent at the end of the year is he’s gone, he’s not coming back. The only thing I learned from The Good Wife is never say never about anything. But the intent at the end of the year is he’s never coming back.


In the romance department, Lucca and Colin’s relationship is currently off. Are they done for good?


Robert:
Justin Bartha is back next year, and I do think that this is a relationship. There are certain lovers and friends, no matter what fights they get into, you know they’re going to get back together because there’s something in their personalities that are drawn together -- in love or hate or compassion or disappointment. There is something in Lucca and Colin; they both see they’re alpha dogs who are attracted to each other. The difficulty for Colin is he’s been groomed by his family for politics and is that going to cause a problem for Lucca? They haven’t given up on each other, or they won’t have in the next year, and how will politics affect their lives?

RELATED: 'The Good Fight' Creators Originally Planned Episode on Nate Parker Controversy


Colin’s true intentions in the professional sphere have been unclear. Does he want to fulfill his family’s wishes to hold political office? Will that be explored in season two?


Robert:
Yes. The only reason why it was unclear was it really wasn’t the subject of the show['s first season]. I don’t think [holding political office is] on Colin’s mind at all. He’s an AUSA pursuing his job and I think that the only question is how this will come up next year. Your questions are questions we’ll be thinking about in the writers’ room.


The fate of Diane’s estranged husband, Kurt McVeigh, was in limbo for most of the finale. Was it ever a consideration to kill him off?


Michelle:
It wasn’t at all. It was always about a situation where we would get to see the two of them together again.

Robert:
That episode was really a head-fake. It was trying to get the audience to go “Oh sh*t, it’s the last episode of the year. They’re going to kill off a character.” That hopefully puts you on the same plane as Diane, who goes to the hospital worried, like “Oh my god, he’s dead.” Diane’s last experience with hospitals was real darkness [when Will Gardner dies in season five of The Good Wife] and there she is again, so it’s alright that the audience thought that this was bad.

CBS All Access

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This pushes Diane and Kurt to reunite at the end. What lies ahead for them? Are they considering getting back together?


Robert:
Everyone wants Diane to be happy, and Diane is happy with McVeigh. The future of them comes down to...

Michelle:
Well, Veep as much as anything else. [Cole is a regular on the HBO comedy series.]


What is ultimately your goal for Diane and Kurt?


Michelle:
I think the answer to that is stay tuned.
Robert: We’re not being completely coy, we also don’t know. We don’t quite know what we’re writing towards next year because in marriage, that’s what happens in real life. We don’t know but we like those characters and we want to see them struggle.


Julius is now on the outs after being ousted from Redick Boseman because of his support of Donald Trump. How much trouble is he going to cause for the firm in the future?


Michelle:
The happy news is that Michael Boatman is coming back as a regular next season, so we will be exploring those issues.

Robert:
We liked the idea of someone who is culturally seen as an outsider within the African American community because he supported Trump, and that creates difficulty in his career but also his personal life. It’d be good if he is treated as someone who has a solid underpinning of logic for why he’s done things and is not disparaged just because of something the majority of people on our show disagree with.

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What surprised you in terms of what worked and what didn’t work in these 10 episodes?


Michelle:
I learned a lesson that I keep learning over and over, and that is that the most fun is to watch our main characters interact with each other. The most fun comes from their tight interaction.

Robert:
The only thing that I was surprised didn’t work for some viewers was the episode about the alt-right and [controversial media personality] Milo Yiannopolous. I thought the episode was an interesting take on the premise and that was a way to pursue the alt-right as a people who wanted to rebel and were using comedy to rebel.

Michelle:
It’s not that it was a disliked episode, it was a divisive episode. Some people adore it and others took issue with it.


What do you want to lean into more in the new season?


Robert:
One of The Good Wife years, we tried to go more serialized and tried to drop some of the cases of the week and it was only moderately successful. What we wouldn’t mind trying is, is there anything that creates a serialized nature to the storytelling? The only worry I have is that could slow down story. What will be interesting is whatever we can [do to] keep the pace up of the episodes while still telling longer cases over the course of the episodes. That’s what I look forward to -- exploring that possibility.


The Good Fight
returns for season two next year on CBS All Access.

For more, watch the video below.