‘Claws’ Star Jimmy Jean-Louis Talks Dr. Ruval’s Bigger Role In Season 2

Fans will see more of Jimmy Jean-Louis in Season 2 of “Claws.”

In a recent interview with Hidden Remote, Jean-Louis said that he felt great when he found out that his character, Dr. Gregory Ruval, will be playing a bigger role in the sophomore run of the TNT series.

“Obviously, when I became involved in [Season 1 of] ‘Claws’ it was just for a few episodes playing Niecy Nash’s love interest. Then at the end of the season, I was revealed as the drug kingpin. So automatically that led to bigger involvement this year,” Jean-Louis said. “Knowing that I am still the love interest, I am in bed with Uncle Daddy (Dean Norris) and the boys, and also you have the Russians around that I’m sort of supervising. So it sort of puts Dr. Ruval, in a very complicated kind of situation.”

Jean-Louis went on to reveal that Dr. Ruval’s secret life as a drug kingpin will eventually affect his relationship with Desna (Nash). “When the doctor is with Desna (Nash) he really does show her real love. So it’s a situation where the audience knows what’s going on but the character herself, Desna, doesn’t know yet,” the “Heroes” alum explained. “So you still see them as a lovely couple, but at the same time, he’s still taking care of business with his drug situation. As we move forward, of course, there will be complications because that cannot stay as beautiful as [it is].”

As revealed by Deadline last February, Season 2 of the Eliot Laurence-created series will also introduce Dr. Ruval’s mom, Matilde, played by Sheryl Lee Ralph. While Jean-Louis described Matilde as a “great mother,” Nash told TVInsider last month that Matilde is a “frenemy” of Desna and her crew. “[She’s] nice-nasty [like] when somebody is nice but they’ve got a little twang on the end of them,” Nash said of the new character.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times last month, Nash recalled her first meeting with Ralph and shared how their friendly ties eventually led to the latter’s addition to the cast of the series.

“Sheryl Lee and I met because she came up to me at a studio once,” Nash revealed. “We’re in the same building, and somebody behind me said, ‘Darling!’ And I spun around, and it was her. She said, ‘Can you clean my house?’ And I said, ‘Indeed, I can.’”

“So I take my show (“Clean House”) [and] go to her house,” the Emmy-nominated actress continued. “We sell her ‘Dreamgirls’ memorabilia. We sell all these clothes. She had enough wigs for a small village. We sell all of her things [that] she and I became fast friends. I was the maid of honor in her wedding. She was the matron of honor in my wedding. And then when we got at this point on the show ‘Claws,’ I went to the powers that be, and I suggested to our creator Eliot Laurence … what if there was this larger than life woman …. He leaned all the way into it, loved it, and now she’s a part of our Season 2.”

“Claws” Season 2 premieres on Sunday, June 10 at 9 p.m. EDT on TNT.