François Arnaud as Manfred
François Arnaud starrer “Midnight, Texas” has been renewed for Season 2 by NBC. But two of the original main cast members will not return as series regulars. NBC/Karen Kuehn

The long wait is over! NBC has finally renewed “Midnight, Texas” for a second season. But unfortunately, not all main cast members are returning for the sophomore run.

According to Deadline, Sarah Ramos and Yul Vazquez — who played Creek Lovell and Reverend Emilio Sheehan, respectively, in Season 1 — will not be back as series regulars next season. Because of the long gap between the time the show filmed its first season and was renewed for a second, the website reported that the options of at least some of the actors had lapsed.

While TV Guide reported that Ramos and Vazquez’s exits were part of the show’s effort to trim down the budget this year, TVLine noted that the former chose not to return to the series in order to pursue other projects. Both actors, however, might still appear as guest stars in the next season.

Monica Owusu-Breen, who wrote the pilot and served as showrunner on Season 1, is also leaving the series to focus on other projects. Eric Charmelo and Nicole Snyder, both consulting producers during the show’s debut season, have been named executive producers and new showrunners for the new season.

Season 1 of “Midnight, Texas,” which is based on a book series by “True Blood” author Charlaine Harris, ended with main character Manfred Bernardo (François Arnaud) defeating the demon Colcannar, who threatened to destroy the veil separating hell from Midnight. Though Manfred with the help of his fellow Midnighters saved the day, the desert town soon received another unwelcome visitors — the developers, who looked to turn the supernatural sanctuary into a tourist haven.

In an interview with TVLine last September, Owusu-Breen said that Season 2 will explore the effects of Manfred’s decision to ingest multiple evil spirits to defeat Colcannar. “Manfred took an enormous risk doing that,” Owusu-Breen said. “What does it mean to take on evil, even if you’re doing that for good? I think that’s a question that Manfred, knock on wood, will be exploring next season.”

In addition to Arnaud, other original cast members confirmed to return are Dylan Bruce (Bobo Winthrop), Parisa Fitz-Henley (Fiji Cavanaugh), Arielle Kebbel (Olivia Charity), and Jason Lewis (Joe Strong). It’s unclear whether Peter Mensah will reprise his role as Lemuel Bridger next season.

Check out some of the cast’s tweets following the season renewal announcement:

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