Animal Kingdom Season 2
Actor Shawn Hatosy hint that his character, Pope on “Animal Kingdom” Season 2 may resort back to his old ways. TNT

“Animal Kingdom” Season 2 is quickly coming to an end and with so much tension between the Cody boys, there is bound to be an explosion that will change the family forever. From the looks of the latest episode, it seems like Pope may be at the center of it all.

Following the airing of “Animal Kingdom” Season 2, episode 11, TV Line released an interview with one of the stars of the show, Shawn Hatosy, who plays Pope Cody on the TNT series. During his chat with the media outlet, the actor hinted that his character may be returning to his violent behavior sooner rather than later.

In “The Leopard” Pope told his girlfriend Amy (Jennifer Landon) that he killed a woman he loved, which shocked Amy, who has devoted herself to God. Although he brought his sin to Amy in hopes of forgiveness, it seemed like she wanted nothing to do with him after he revealed that secret.

The woman he loved was his brother Baz’s (Scott Speedman) wife Catherine (Daniella Alonso). Hatosy hinted that Amy’s rejection could have terrible results. “I think it’s Pope’s last stand. Well, I don’t think, I know. We’ve been toying with this all season — what is his way out?” he said.

“He’s got this guilt, but he’s also said that he’s not going to let Baz go down for [Catherine’s murder]. I think he’s smart enough to know that if he doesn’t get the forgiveness he needs from Amy, the next step is much darker,” he teased.

Although his character was initially difficult to like, Hatosy is happy with the progress Pope has made, and even though he may have to make a tough decision about his relationship, the actor has been holding out hope for Pope and Amy’s success.

“After the awful things he did, I wasn’t sure that the audience would be able to kind of come around on him,” he explained. In Season 1, Pope killed Catherine because Smurf (Ellen Barkin) made him believe that she was talking to the cops and was going to break their family up.

However, in “The Leopard,” Pope found out that Catherine never spoke to the cops because she wanted to protect the family. Riddled with guilt, he confessed to Amy, who has a dark past of her own, hoping she would understand.

Although there is a good chance that their relationship is over, the actor felt like the two could have worked out their problems in a different environment.

“He and Amy both have this quality where they’re both so damn wounded that you just wish that they were in Idaho someplace in a church and that these circumstances weren’t around them. If not for his bad behavior in society, I think they could be, ultimately, a very successful couple,” Hatosy said.

Despite his hopes, it’s more than likely that the next thing on Pope’s agenda will be something terrible involving Amy. “Pope goes against everything he’s feeling right now when he runs to her. But she’s shown him that forgiveness is his way out of this prison he’s put himself in, and he needs that hopeful ending,” Hatosy said.

“He needs somebody else in his life that can just look at him as a functioning, normal person. So he reveals his darkest secret because she’s revealed her darkest secret. And, of course, he’s not going to find any salvation.”

“Animal Kingdom” Season 2 airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. EDT on TNT.

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