Gina Rodriguez joins Will Trent as a regular season 3 cast member, playing Marion Alba.
Season 2 started off on a cliffhanger, raising fears that Rodriguez’s character could face a similar fate.
Will Trent desperately needs to give Ramón Rodrguez’s character a new (and stable) love interest.
Will Trent will add Gina Rodriguez to its regular cast in season 3, but I’m still too traumatized by what happened to Susan Kelechi Watson’s character in season 2 to believe Rodriguez will stick around for the long haul. The ABC police procedural is based on Karin Slaughter’s Will Trent books and follows the eponymous character, a sharp-eyed GBI agent with a traumatic past. Throughout its two seasons, the Will Trent cast, which includes Ramón Rodríguez as Will, Erika Christensen as Angie, and Iantha Richardson as Faith, has remained relatively the same. That’s about to change, though.
The season 2 finale of Will Trent ended on a cliffhanger, as Will arrested Angie after learning the truth about Lenny’s death. Crystal, the daughter of the woman Lenny was dating, stabbed him in the neck in season 1. Lenny abused Crystal just like he abused Angie, and Angie helped cover up the murder to protect Crystal. However, the season 2 finale revealed that Crystal had killed more pedophiles, and the truth about everything else began to come out. So Angie is in prison and Will is nowhere to be seen, and I’m worried that there’s more tragedy to come in season 3. According to Deadline, Gina Rodriguez has been cast as the lead in the delayed season 3 of Will Trent. The actress will play Marion Alba, an Assistant District Attorney who has just moved to Atlanta. Marion is described as “charming” and “confident,” but her charm doesn’t seem to make an impression on their first meeting. While Will and Marion’s first impressions of each other aren’t great, they’re quickly forced to work together on a case, which could help form a bond between them, cementing their relationship. Other than that, not much else is known about Rodriguez’s new character.
As some may recall, Susan Kelechi Watson guest-starred as Cricket Dawson, a bomb disposal technician, in the Will Trent season 2 premiere. Given her flirtation with Will and the obvious chemistry between the two characters, it seemed like Cricket would stick around for a while. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, and I’m worried that Will Trent season 3 could be a repeat of what happened with Cricket and Gina Rodriguez’s Marion. Despite [Susan Kelechi] Watson and Ramn Rodrguez having great on-screen chemistry, [Will Trent’s] character died, which makes me worried for [Gina] Rodriguez’s character.
At the end of the season 2 episode, Will and Cricket were trying to defuse a bomb in the parking lot of the GBI building. As its timer was running out, Cricket realized that there wasn’t enough time to stop it. So she gave Will a stupid mission and ran to a sealed room with the bomb. Cricket threw it inside and closed the door, but didn’t have enough time to escape and shield herself from the blast. Will watched from afar as the bomb exploded, killing Cricket and any chance of a romance between the two characters.
While Watson and Ramón Rodríguez had great chemistry on screen, the actress’ character died, which made me worry for Rodriguez’s character. Of course, Rodriguez was a series regular (unlike Watson), but that doesn’t mean Marion won’t die. Her life, like any other character, is expendable, and Will Trent is known for giving Will the worst luck when it comes to love. Will Trent’s shocking moment in season 2 could return in season 3, and Marion’s fate could be the same as Cricket’s (though it shouldn’t be).
ABC has yet to confirm Marion’s relationship with Will in Will Trent season 3, beyond teasing their first meeting. However, I believe she will be Will’s love interest (if Ramón Rodríguez and Gina Rodriguez have chemistry). Cricket is dead, and Angie is in prison. Eventually, he’ll have to get over Angie and accept that they’re not meant to be together, and that’s where Marion comes in.
ABC has delayed the premiere of Will Trent season 3 to early 2025 (an exact release date has yet to be announced as of this writing).
Will and Marion may not be a couple at first, as he’s definitely still reeling from Angie’s arrest. But I believe it’s only a matter of time before they start dating. Ultimately, hopefully Will and Marion have great chemistry, Marion doesn’t die, and she becomes Will’s new love interest in Will Trent season 3.
