Kristin Lehman Returns For Season 2 Of 'Motive'

Motive is one of Canada’s best crime dramas and it’s back to shake things up for its sophomore season. After a wonderful chat with us before season one, star Kristin Lehman – who plays the fearless Detective Angie Flynn – rejoined BFTV last week to talk about what’s different in season two.

Would she say that the series went through any significant changes between seasons, or are we about to see pretty much the same show we fell in love with? “It’s hard for me to say, because I end up adapting to what’s in front of me. But I think it’s a little bit of both of those things,” she told us. “One is the same characters you came to know and the same world views for the most part, but with a bit of a faster pace. And then the other addition is that with our two new characters – Sergeant Mark Cross and Officer Wendy Sung – instead of going home with Angie, you’ve got the tensions and the interoffice politics right there while the crimes are being solved.”

Sparks will definitely fly this season, as Cross is not only Angie’s new supervisor, but audiences will quickly find out they also had a previous affair – while he was married. As played by Warren Christie, Cross brings an extra uncomfortable edge and some swag to the show. And TV buffs will also appreciate the later addition of Christie’s Alphas co-star Laura Mennell as prosecutor Samantha Turner, who has her own chemistry with the sergeant, not unlike their characters on that late SyFy original series.

What was it like bringing the newcomers aboard? “Warren and I kind of knew each other by proxy. We have some mutual friends in common and so I was excited that he’d be joining us,” Kristin said. “And of course he and Laura have a pre-existing relationship [from Alphas]. It was lovely.”

They’re not the only familiar faces that you’ll see in the second run of Motive; almost every episode features somebody you’ll be excited to recognize. “Jennifer Beals joins us in episode two. And then we’ve got Callum Keith Rennie in episode seven, I believe, who you’ll know from Californication,” Kristin revealed. “Kenny Johnson, who you might know from The Shield, he’s in our finale and I just loved him to pieces. I didn’t want him to go. And my husband, Adam Greydon Reid, is also in our show, with Callum in episode seven.” Other guest stars include Carlos Bernard (24) and Corbin Bernsen (Psych).

But what about the people who are already there? We asked Kristin how she stepped into Angie’s shoes for another season. “I approached her from a content perspective the same way I did the first time,” she told us. “As a mother whose son has now gone off to college. As a woman who’s proud of her job…That being said, there’s a lot of shakeups in season two!”

“I think our whole season does a really good job of drawing people in. The people on the show, we hope that we create characters that people want to spend time with. That’s what I’m most proud of,” she continued. “I love telling these stories. I want [Motive] to connect with as many people as possible. I feel like we’ve connected with the audience; I want us to keep connecting with the audience. And it feels like ABC’s really behind us.”

As the American audience gets ready to see season two, the Canadian audience is bracing themselves for the second-season finale. So what about a third season of Motive? The outlook is good. “We are beginning our development. I don’t think there’s been an official pickup yet,” Kristin said. We’ll find out for sure at the CTV upfront presentation on June 5, but she told us, “I’m happy to say that I think we are moving into our third season.” And we’re happy to have Angie Flynn back on the case.

Motive premieres tonight at 10 PM ET/PT on ABC. For more on Kristin, be sure you’re following her on Twitter (@KristinLehman1).

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Photo/Video Credit: ABC/Youtube

Kristin Lehman Returns For Season 2 Of ‘Motive’

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