Widow’s Bay fans can look forward to a lot more laughs and possibly screams in future episodes. The Apple TV comedy-horror is shaking up its cast ahead of its Season 2. The acclaimed series, which follows a haunted Massachusetts island town, has promoted one of its standout guest performers to a full-time role.
Jeff Hiller gets a bigger role in Widow’s Bay Season 2
Jeff Hiller will make the jump from guest star to series regular in Widow’s Bay Season 2. Hiller plays Dale, a Town Hall staffer working under Matthew Rhys’ Mayor Tom Loftis, and his promotion promises more of the panic-stricken energy that made him a fan favorite.
Hiller landed the role through an old connection. He met Widow’s Bay creator Katie Dippold in an improv group roughly 25 years ago. He sent in a self-tape without telling her. After he booked the part, Dippold warned him that his character would die. The script changed, and she called him to ask, “Do you mind if I don’t kill you?”
The actor credits their improv history for shaping Dale’s comedic breakdowns. “I have a shorthand with Katie,” Hiller told Deadline. “She liked when I would melt down and scream. The whole team would always make me do these dramatic monologues where I would end up screaming and crying on the ground. It was a funny bit. And when I read that, I was like, ‘Oh, she wants this.’”
Moreover, the promotion has come during a strong awards run for Hiller. He got an Emmy nomination this year for his guest role as Larry in Pluribus, Vince Gilligan’s drama about a mind-melding pandemic. He also won an Emmy last year for playing Joel in Somebody, Somewhere.
Widow’s Bay also scored 19 Emmy nominations for its Season 1, making it the most-nominated new show of the year. The series stars Rhys, Stephen Root as fisherman Wyck, Kate O’Flynn as Patricia, Dale Dickey as Rosemary, and Kevin Carroll as Sheriff Bechir.
Dippold has not revealed story details for Widow’s Bay Season 2. Rhys called the premiere’s finale “the ultimate setup” and described a “massive cliffhanger.” Now, fans would have to wait to see how this plays out.
