As you’ll no doubt see over the coming days, The Hardy Boys was one of my highlights of WonderCon. The show does a great job of keeping to the spirit of the books while making the show making it feel modern and fresh. I was able to attend the press room for the show and got to chat with actors Rohan Campbell, Alexander Elliot, Keana Lyn, Adam Swain, Riley O’Donnell, Cristian Perri and Krista Nazaire and find out some fun details of season 2!

Changing Dynamics of the Brothers
One of the most interesting things going into season 2 is how the dynamics of the brothers have shifted a bit. Judging by the premiere, it seems that Joe Hardy is going to be the brother pushing for cases, and getting into trouble. “They’ve both found what they’re good at, they both know how to be detectives, so now they’re equal,” notes Alexander Elliot.

For Frank, he’s pushed in this season by something that can’t necessarily be fixed by detective work. Rohan Campbell mentioned that this was really exciting for him to play.

On the Progression of Their Characters
When season 2 opens up, we find the characters firmly established in their new realities. For Keana, she enjoyed getting to delve further into Callie’s storyline because of how season one ended with her not getting into prep school and losing Gloria as a mentor.

Biff gets to explore a lot of her identity this season and finds a lot of independence according to Riley O’Donnell. One of the storylines that’s swirling around her and Joe is Biff’s adoption, an issue that certainly will tie into much of their character dynamics

For Cristian, he was excited to see Phil grow and give really good ideas. When the characters don’t know something he always seems to be the guy who can pop up with some information and help.

Adam notes that this season, we see that Chet chooses to take care of himself more. Especially coming off of the breakup with Callie (which is played very maturely), he notes that it’s important for guys to see that you can take some time for you. This new perspective leads him into the orbit of Belinda.

New Characters Join the Fray
Speaking of Belinda, in the preview of episode 1 that we saw during the panel, we get introduced to Belinda (Krista Nazaire). In her words, Krista describes her as “a punk rock girl, she’s an anarchist…we don’t really get to see many people who look like Belinda get into those things in the 80s in mainstream television.” Belinda brings a new vibe and energy to the gang, and Rohan noted that the chemistry between Chet and Belinda is incredible.

The Perks of Shooting on Location
It wouldn’t be The Hardy Boys without the kids getting into hijinks all over town and all of the actors say that they loved getting to shoot on location, even when they may have been cramped or difficult to get to. Alexander loved getting to shoot in the forrest because “it felt like a big camping trip.” Not just for the fun of being there, this way of shooting lends an authentic feel to the show as well as allows the actors to delve into their performances in a different way.

The New Mystery
In season 1, what starts out as a “Simple” mystery soon dovetails with the unexplainable, and season 2’s mystery is no different. All of the actors noted how this season has some incredible twists and turns that even they didn’t see coming, but they loved getting to work together to show how their characters used their brains. “No one gets excluded from the detective moments,” said Adam.

One Word To Describe the New Season
Krista : Enigmatic
Rohan: Wild
Keana: Communal
Adam: Charming
Christian: Crazy
Riley: Demon
Alexander: Flambouyant