‘Wayward Pines’ Season 2 Stars Jason Patric As Recent ‘Arrival’ To Changed Town [Spoilers]

When viewers revisit Wayward Pines during its Season 2 premiere this Wednesday, they’ll be experiencing a whole new town — or one that has evolved somewhat from where the show left off last summer. This time around, it’s Jason Patric, playing surgeon Theo Yedlin, who awakes from suspension to find himself in a very unique small town that he can’t leave.

According to executive producer M. Night Shyamalan, Yedlin’s profession is no accident. In a video posted by Entertainment Weekly he teased that Yedlin’s surgical skills could be very important in the last vestige of humanity on earth. But Yedlin will have a series of challenges ahead. In another EW report, it’s revealed that, as Season 2 begins, Wayward Pines is in the midst of a civil war. Fans will recall that Season 1 ended with a time jump, showing one of the members of the First Generation ruling the town and revering founder David Pilcher as an almost divine figure.

“The new season starts off in a very surprising place, but with a number of familiar faces from season 1 returning right off the bat. As for the town itself, Wayward Pines is a very different, more militaristic place in season 2. In short: War isn’t coming, it’s already here.”

Among those who are returning for Season 2 are Hope Davis, who plays Wayward Academy’s teacher Ms. Fisher, and Tom Stevens, who plays Jason Higgins, leader of the First Generation. A quick look at the IMDB page for the show indicates that many of the old characters will be back — in some capacity — for the new installment. In the premiere, Carla Gugino’s Kate Hewson and Terrence Howard’s Sheriff Pope both appear on the cast list, although not as leading characters.

Kate coming to life.???? #waywardpines #hairandmakeup #onlocation #Vancouver https://t.co/xpOINLpU3c pic.twitter.com/8U22SJvNl3

— Carla Gugino (@carlagugino) March 2, 2016

Deadline, in its review of the new season, revealed Toby Jones (Pilcher) and Melissa Leo (Pilcher’s sister Pam), in addition to Howard and Gugino are seen in “glimpses.” EW reported earlier this year that Gugino and Leo each guest star in at least one episode.

The Sydney Morning Herald dropped a tidbit about how Patric’s character will find himself in Wayward Pines: he shares a drink with Sheriff Pope while vacationing in Hawaii and wakes up in the future. If this is a flashback, it may explain why Howard’s appearance is limited to a guest spot.

One of the season’s new faces is an original inhabitant of Wayward Pines: CJ Mitchum, played by Djimon Hounsou. Mitchum is billed as a historian with a lot of information about the town. Nimrat Kaur will play Dr. Yedlin’s wife Rebecca.

So, will the new season please fans? According to the Deadline review, the show should have stopped as a 10-episode limited series, describing the new installment as “at best all style and no substance.” The site notes that although Shyamalan is behind the scenes this year, he is not directing any episodes. Last year’s showrunner, Chad Hodge, has been replaced by Mark Friedman.

Deadline accuses Davis’ character, Ms. Fisher, of going “Dr. Strangelove,” which might be an interesting development given her intense loyalty to Pilcher and the mentor role she played for the First Generation. The Deadline reviewer did not seem to respond positively to that development, however.

TheHerald, however, seemed to have a favorable assessment of the Season 2 premiere.

“The whole WP universe has been nicely tweaked to feel same-but-different and by the end of this opening installment it’s obvious we’re off on a different journey altogether.”

The Season 2 premiere of Wayward Pines airs Wednesday, May 25 at 9 p.m. on Fox.

[Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images]