April Parker, one of the stars of Marvel's Runaways, has teased her character's plot for season 2. Runaways is one of two Marvel TV shows that are aimed at young adults, and season 2 is due to stream on Hulu in December. Parker plays Catherine Wilder, one of the key members of the criminal group known as the Pride, whose plans have been severely disrupted by their teenage children.
Season 1 left the Wilder family divided, with Catherine and her husband heartbroken after Alex and his friends left home and took to the streets - finally becoming the titular Runaways. Although Catherine doesn't know it, her son Alex seems to have gone to extreme lengths to prepare to defend himself; in the last episode, he even managed to acquire a gun. Catherine isn't going to find it easy to pull her family back together again.
In an interview with Hulu Watcher, Parker teased that her character will remain dedicated to Alex over the course of season 2. Catherine and her husband, Geoffrey have just one goal: to find Alex and bring him home. Although she wouldn't give any details, she confirmed that the Wilders will use "all the resources at our disposal," including the corrupt police force of Los Angeles. Where Catherine had been divided and conflicted in Runaways season 1, now she's laser-focused. "All of the regret and conflict is gone," Parker explained. "Now, she has one goal and that’s getting Alex back. And she’ll make that happen by any means necessary."
The final scenes of season 1 showed the group walking through Los Angeles at sunrise, one of the best moments in the series yet. It put their situation in frankly a far more realistic context than even the comics ever achieved; the teens' privileged upbringing means they're in over their heads. What's more, the Wilders have already ensured the police are looking for them.
It will be fascinating to see if Catherine Wilder's focus causes problems for the Pride. The TV version of the Pride is slightly different to the original comic book incarnation; rather than committed criminals, they're unwilling agents of a mysterious being named Jonah. Jonah's true motives remain unrevealed, but he's unlikely to take well to the Pride's failure to control their children. What's more, Jonah has no qualms about killing the Runaways - indeed, he already killed Nico Minoru's sister Amy, a fact that will no doubt leave Catherine and Geoffrey Wilder deeply concerned.
Interestingly, Parker insisted that she had to read through the comics in order to truly understood Catherine Wilder's character. Her goal is to honor Brian K. Vaughan's original Runaways comic book run, which is one of the most beloved in comic book history. Given that's the case, viewers should expect Catherine to be one of the most dangerous, and ruthless, members of the Pride. Now that her goal is simplified, she's going to be a force to be reckoned with.
Marvel's Runaways returns on Hulu on December 21.