By Zach Johnson
SPOILER ALERT: This article contains spoilers for the Season 2 finale of Secrets of Sulphur Springs.
If your jaw is still on the floor after watching “Time Is Not on Our Side,” the exhilarating season two finale of Disney Branded Television’s Secrets of Sulphur Springs, you’re not alone! It ended on a spectacular cliffhanger, with Griffin (Preston Oliver) stuck in the future, Savannah (Elle Graham) stuck in the present, and Harper (Kyliegh Curran) stuck in another precarious situation. To make sense of it all, D23 interviewed two of the series’ executive producers, creator Tracey Thomson and showrunner Charles Pratt Jr., to solve a few lingering mysteries—and to get a hint of what to expect when the series returns for its just-announced third season.
D23: Why did Griffin and Harper pull back when they were about to kiss in episode seven (“Check-Out Time”)? Another three weeks passed before they spoke about it, and Griffin suggested that they didn’t want things to change… but he didn’t seem too sure about that.
Charles Pratt Jr. (CPJ): It was a spontaneous moment. They were wrapped up in the joy of freeing the ghost and reaching that moment. They’re in the moonlight, they’ve been through a very profound experience, and they look at each other… We’ve done little things all along, from the very first episode, to tease that could this be something more than just a friendship.
D23: Right after their almost-kiss, we saw the door to The Tremont swing open. Was that a new ghost entering the hotel—or was that the same ghost they had just freed coming back?
CPJ: Definitely a new ghost.
D23: Is the ghost a character we’ve met before, or is it someone new?
Tracey Thomson (TT): No hints! [Laughs]
D23: Why did Griffin travel to 2024 without Harper in the finale?
TT: Griffin knew the crystal was cracking. They warned Savannah that they only might have a few more trips to go back through the portal, and he needs to know what’s going to happen to himself in the future and what Harper’s vision meant. Plus, he doesn’t want to put Harper in danger of getting trapped. So, he goes without her. It’s an act of caring; he cares too much about Harper to let her get trapped again. She just came back from being trapped in the ‘30s.
D23: After Griffin joins Sam (Eugene Byrd) in the future, the crystal cracks. Does that make it impossible for them to return to their timelines? Also, what’s significant about the year 2024?
TT: The kids are not going to let Griffin be stuck in the future. They’re going to do everything in their power to bring him home. And Savannah is stuck in the present; she needs to go back home as well. Working together, all the kids will try to find a way. And Sam picked the year 2024 because he’s looking for a cure for the disease that killed his mother—last year’s ghost.
D23: Savanah came to check in on what was happening in the present timeline for Griffin and Harper, and then she had two near run-ins with Ben (Josh Braaten). He sort of recognized her during the party, even though she was wearing a mask. And then at the very end of the finale, when he caught Harper in the hatch, Savannah managed to hide from him. Can you tease a little bit about what’s going to happen next? If Ben finds Savannah, he’s obviously going to recognize her, given that her disappearance in the ‘90s was such a big part of his childhood.
TT: I think those are all great questions. What would happen if Ben found her? You have to remember that Ben doesn’t know about time travel. So, what he’s grappling with is, ‘This girl seems familiar to me.’ But he isn’t putting A and B together and asking, ‘Could that be Savannah?’ He isn’t thinking like that. But yeah… Harper’s going to have to do some fast talking! It will be fun to explore what will Ben do if he finds out the truth about Savannah?
CPJ: And what happens if he actually does find the tunnel and the hatch?
D23: Ben isn’t fully aware of what’s going on, but during season two, we saw Sarah (Kelly Frye) talking to the ghost in the mirror before it shattered; Ben yelled at the ghost in frustration; Jess (DiAndra Lyle) noticed something strange bubbling up in the springs. In season three, are the adults going to be as active as the kids have been in trying to solve some of these mysteries—whether or not they realize ghosts and time travel are involved?
CPJ: Definitely. We’re going to tie them in even more than we ever have. They obviously all believe in ghosts by now. So, if there’s a really nasty ghost haunting The Tremont, they all have to deal with it—while at the same time opening a restaurant and running the hotel. This ghost is going to threaten the entire operation, and their livelihoods will depend on going back into the past to find out who this ghost is, where they came from, and what they want.
D23: In the finale, Griffin and Harper discovered Mrs. Barker is actually Savannah as an adult. That seems to indicate that at some point, Savannah makes it back to her original timeline…
TT: You would think, yes. We thought it was interesting to explore what happened to Savannah as she grew up in the ‘60s. Did she stay in Sulphur Springs? Where would she be now? We love the little nod to season one; she recognizes the kids and uses their code names.
D23: We also need to talk about what’s going on in room 205. We’ve seen the mist and the mud creeping through the door, and it almost looks like something’s trying to push through.
CPJ: The idea is, one ghost checks out and another ghost checks in. Again, this is a different ghost. The last ghost was mischievous and angry about certain things and she was trying to right a wrong. This ghost seems to be different. Maybe this ghost has been trying to get into this house, but the other ghost had to leave before this ghost could invade. The jeopardy is going to be turned up next season as you discover what this ghost is up to and what this ghost wants. This is not an innocent ghost; this is a much scarier ghost with nefarious plans.
D23: Is there anything else you want fans to know as you work on season three?
TT: I think we just want to thank them for watching. They’ve been on this ride with us, and they keep coming back for more, which is great. And we can’t wait to film the new season!
Both seasons of Secrets of Sulphur Springs are available to stream now on Disney+.
