Courtney B. Vance Previews Long-Awaited ’61st Street’ Season 2: ‘Everyone is Going to Be in Shock’ (Exclusive)

After two long years, legal drama 61st Street is finally coming back this Monday, July 22 following its cancellation at AMC. Last year, The CW picked up the Courtney B. Vance-led series, which follows a lawyer trying to do right within a corrupted criminal justice system in Chicago.

While Season 1 saw Vance’s Franklin Roberts representing a promising black high school athlete who was swept into the corrupt system, Season 2 will see him taking on a very different case. Vance spoke to PopCulture.com all about the long-awaited second season and what fans can expect. (This interview has been edited for length and clarity.)

PopCulture: What can you preview for Season 2 of 61st Street?

Courtney B. Vance: Well, the first season, and folks can catch up on the first season on The CW app, plug there, but the second season, there’s no way you can anticipate where we’re going to go. It’s amazing. All I say is, so not to spoiling anything, is that we are going to turn ahead again. You’re going to be in shock that this is happening. And the community, and my family and everyone is going to be in shock where we end up going and what we’re doing.

PC: Going off of that, Franklin will be representing Officer Logan this season, who killed an innocent man. What can viewers expect from that fallout and the betrayal that the community will probably be feeling?

Vance: All of that is what does the community feel about? But again, Franklin is trying to get folks to realize wrong is wrong, right is right. And if an officer has been wrong, then that’s got to be righted because all policemen are not all bad, nor are they all good. And if a situation happens that needs to be addressed, you’ve got to address it. You can’t; just because the uniform is blue doesn’t mean that the person is right. And so Franklin continues to do his work, which is, it’s dangerous at times, and again, it’s about people. It’s about taking care of people and defending people who need to be defended.

PC: In Season 1, it was revealed that Franklin had cancer. How will viewers continue to see that affect his everyday life? 

Vance: Yeah, that’s a goodie, Megan. It’s progressing. His prostate cancer is progressing. My grandfather died of prostate cancer, and my prostate was enlarged, so I had to deal with that four or five years ago. It’s just the message for viewers is take care of yourself. If you don’t have a doctor that you feel comfortable with, I mean, the healthcare system in America is lacking. For certain members of society, it doesn’t work at all, and it needs to work for everyone. Everyone deserves to have healthcare. I mean, it should be a basic right. It should be a basic need like breathing, like voting, which is not as questionable these days.

Anyway, he is dealing with a major, major health issue while trying to do a major, major defense and to hold his family together. So, the man is being pulled in so many different directions. So it’s what makes this series and his character so impactful because you recognize doing the right thing can cost you. And it’s costing him. And hopefully, it doesn’t end up costing him everything.

PC: In the Season 1 finale, we found out that Moses was found not guilty. What kind of impact does that verdict have on Franklin in the community, both good and bad?

Vance: Yeah, that’s it. Good and bad. Everybody’s not always happy when good things happen to people, and good things happen for people, so some people are threatened by your success, and so we can’t do things or not do things just because someone has a problem with us. My dear acting mother in Fences, the late great Mary Alice, said, “Courtney, everybody doesn’t have to like you, and you don’t have to like everybody, but you’ve got to respect them. You don’t have to like them, but you’ve got to respect them. And conversely that, if you do that, they will hopefully respect you, and if they don’t, shake the dust off your shoes and keep walking.” So it’s all good. It’s all good.

PC: Is there anything that you’re really excited for fans to see for Season 2 after this long wait?

Vance: Megan, I guess I just want them to see it. I don’t even know if I’ve seen it. I can’t remember if I’ve seen the whole thing. So I saw Season 1 and I didn’t worry about it too much because I said, “Wow, Season 2 is coming, so I’ll see it in that season.” But then it didn’t happen. I was like, “Oh boy.” So for it to come out now, and I’m just excited to hear people’s reaction about where the next phase of who he defends and who he protects, and the fallout, and the fall in. And so I’m excited.

61st Street Season 2 premieres on Monday, July 22 at 9 p.m. ET on The CW.