Manifest creator talks renewal chances for Season 2; breaks down that season finale reveal

The season finale of NBC’s Manifest laid out some major mythological reveals on Monday night, setting the stage for a potential six season run. So what does the showrunner have to say about all those twists and cliffhangers?

**Spoilers ahead for Manifest’s season finale**

Showrunner Jeff Rake told TV Guide the reveal that the survivors of Flight 828 might be living with a “death clock” will, obviously, reverberate into Season 2 and beyond. Basically, Ben (Josh Dallas) and his daughter Olive (Luna Blaise) come to the parallel conclusion that the returned may run out of time in five-and-a-half years (setting up a potential six season run, if the show sticks around that long). So how will that inform the rest of the series? Rake says we’ll see the survivors try to make sense of the reveal, and also work to see if they can overcome it.

“The fact that they reached the same result carries a lot of weight for them but it's still just a theory that will require Ben and others to set out to try to figure out if there are ways that they can confirm this theory that is, in a sense, the worst nightmare for them. And then also, try to figure out if this is their fate, then can it be overcome? Is it sealed or is it something that can somehow be defied? That will be an ongoing question for our heroes for the remainder of the series and that'll drive a lot of their actions in Season 2 and beyond,” Rake said. “That will, of course, lead to a lot of collateral behavior as the word spreads among the passenger community that they may only have five and a half years left. It will lead to a lot of different actions on the part of people who believe. There will be denialists who throw caution to the wind and try to seize the day, so to speak.”

Rake also addressed the much more immediate cliffhanger, which ended with Jared (J.R. Ramirez) and Zeke (Matt Long) in a scuffle for a gun that goes off just as the screen fades to black. Rake confirmed that definitely was a gunshot, and yes, it did hit somebody. But, that’s all he had to say ahead of a potential second season.

“That's, of course, gonna pay off in Season 2. That bullet that you heard was not a car engine outside on the street,” he said. “It did not hit the ceiling. We'll come to discover that it found a target and there will be consequences at the top of the next season and consequences that will be long-lasting.”

Though it’s clear Manifest has a longterm plan, NBC still hasn’t made an official announcement about a second season. Rake says he’s hearing a lot of “positive murmurs” and has a “good feeling” the show will return. Even if NBC decides to pass, Rake says he’d try to shop the series to other networks or streaming services — but for now — a return at NBC sounds likely.

(Via TV Guide)