It’s onerous to imagine it has been two years since Starz’s “Run the World” first hit our TV screens — even the forged are shocked when they give thought to the present’s lengthy hiatus. But the excellent news is the Harlem-set dramedy is lastly again for season two, which kicked off on May 26, and 30-something-year-old besties Whitney (Amber Stevens West), Renee (Bresha Webb), and Sondi (Corbin Reid) are able to get again into the swing of issues. Of course, the half-hour collection returns for far more drama, sisterhood, and romance following season one’s wild finale, however that is not all viewers can sit up for.
“We just leaned in harder because we became even closer friends during the break in between, so it was easy to dive right back in.”
“There’s some fun stuff that happens this season,” Stevens West teases to POPSUGAR. “There are the big things that are fun this season — there’s a wedding and there’s a funeral. And there’s always antics around those kinds of celebrations in real life.” But greater than that, the “Run the World” star says viewers will certainly take pleasure in “seeing all these women choosing themselves and having to navigate their romantic lives in a different way than they did in season one. That’s pretty exciting.”
The women of “Run the World” say it was fairly simple to return to their common routine virtually one yr after their present’s May 2021 debut. They even say shrinking their important ensemble of 4 right down to a trio — Andrea Bordeaux, who performed Ella, exited the collection in February 2022 — got here with ease. “We just leaned in harder because we became even closer friends during the break in between, so it was easy to dive right back in,” Stevens West shares of her castmates, who jokingly confer with themselves as a lady group named DS3, although they word they need to’ve gone with their first identify initials as a substitute (ABC). “It’s a take on Destiny’s Child,” Webb jests.
“Run the World” concluded with a little bit of a shake-up after Whitney confessed to her fiancé (and now ex), Ola (Tosin Morohunfola), that she cheated on him. Finding solace in her sister circle, Whitney tries to piece her shattered life again collectively, which is the place season two picks again up. But the street forward is not simple.
“With Whitney having only been in this one relationship her whole life and then blowing that whole thing up, she’s now having an opportunity to decide if that really was the man of her dreams and that’s what she wants to pursue, or look elsewhere and live a more authentic version of herself with the next partner,” Stevens West says of her character’s arc. “We’ll see.”
Whitney is not the just one going through challenges in season two. Webb’s Renee finds herself in her personal dilemma — romantic {and professional} — after quitting her fancy job at Eclipse in season one, and he or she’s nonetheless struggling together with her separation from her husband, Jason (Jay Walker). But the problem of beginning her personal enterprise — and a romance with somebody new — will pose obstacles Webb says different ladies might discover relatable.
“Renee’s character, for the first time, is trying to figure out what success looks like for her and what happens when you’re uncomfortable with the decisions you make, and how you navigate those conversations so that you can walk in your truth and honest life,” she says. “So she’s dealing with that, and I feel like that’s really aspirational for women, to take a chance and have grace for themselves while they figure it out.”
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“Run the World”‘s second season sticks with that theme of “figuring it out” as all the women (sans Ella) are caught between a rock and a tough place as they battle to navigate the place they’re and the place they need to be of their lives. “There’s a line that’s definitely an extension of [one] we have in season one, where I say, ‘How we move or when we move, there’s only one direction: straight ahead,'” Reid remembers. “I think each of our characters definitely lives that mantra in this season in the sentiment that they’re not afraid. You see the problems brew, brew, brew in season one, and they sort of bubble up to the surface, and then you see them be willing to let it explode and blow it up because it’s about choosing what you want and need and not being afraid of what the consequences could be. And then they’re there for each other to pick up the pieces and reassess.”
“I love that we give permission for Black women to be any way they want to be because that’s good enough.”
Reid continues, “I think it’s very easy when you get into your 30s to go along to get along sometimes, because you think you’re supposed to have everything all figured out and settle down. But these are modern women with modern problems and ambitions, strong life views, and you get to really see them walk in their purpose fearlessly and unapologetically.”
With “Run the World,” Webb considers it a privilege to be a part of a collection that encourages all ladies, particularly Black ladies, to “take a chance on yourself, believe in yourself, and follow your heart.” “It’s so important,” she provides, “and I think that is the message, you know, to live out your life even if you’re trying to figure it out.”
Stevens West agrees; as she places it, “I love that we show the diverse way that Black women are.”
“We are shown one way for a Black woman to be, and she’s a strong Black woman, but we’re showing how dynamic we are. It’s OK to be a Black girl who loves trivia night at a bar and can answer all the geography questions, because we don’t normally see successful Black women in those spaces,” she provides proudly. “So I love that we give permission for Black women to be any way they want to be, because that’s good enough.”
“Run the World” has already promised that season two will proceed to “focus on the bonds of friendship and power of Black sisterhood as the ladies fashionably navigate through the ups and downs of love and careers in their pursuit of world domination.” So when requested how else the forged describes the new season, the three women readily reply — on cue as if they’re really Destiny’s Child — “Bold, authentic, fierce!”
“Run the World” airs new episodes on Fridays on Starz.
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