A TIME TO KILLJOY
Evil twins, confrontations and kicking ass in season three of Killjoys
The second season finale of Killjoys delivered devastating blow after blow to the titular band of bounty hunters. Dutch’s father figure Khlyen sacrificed himself to save her. Delle murdered John’s girlfriend, Pawter. In retaliation, he killed Delle and went rogue with Clara. When Killjoys returns, the team remains fractured – and on the brink of war.
“I wanted to be able to pull away a little bit from some of the darker Killjoys elements that we ended on,” showrunner Michelle Lovretta tells Red Alert. “I love where we took last season and thought it was necessary to free Dutch up from Khlyen. This season, she’s a bit lighter and a bit more eager to get back to what she enjoys about killjoying, which is kicking ass and settling scores.”
The gang eventually reunites, but Pawter’s death still haunts John. Those wounds need healing before he can move on.
“John hasn’t made peace yet with his past, but it’s more his loss that still needs to be dealt with,” says Lovretta. “Certainly, there are a lot of surprising ways that what he did in the past comes back to bite him in the ass. I found it interesting and credible that after he experienced the loss of Pawter, there had to be a shift inside of him. He’s not quite the same John on a very deep level.”
Lovretta also promises the introduction of an enemy that “throws into question everybody’s loyalties at a very crucial time”. That looming threat refers to the Hullen, a race of humans bonded to a neuroparasite that bestows them with enhanced abilities. Khlyen’s daughter, Aneela – Dutch’s evil double – leads them.
“We dig into the origin story of Aneela as a complicated character,” Lovretta explains. “At the same time, we reveal these hidden layers of who Dutch actually is. Aneela blames Dutch for Khlyen’s death, which renews her desire to get vengeance.
“Realistically, we are speaking about a small group of scrappy underdogs who like to get paid to for what they do and not die for a cause,” she continues. “What Dutch has to do is, bit by bit, convince the loyal Killjoys around them that there’s a larger danger afoot here, that this is something worth fighting for.”
Lovretta envisioned Killjoys as a five-season series. Now halfway there, season three will propel the back half of the show and its evolving mythology.
“I would say season one and two are a two-parter, telling the story of the Killjoys and the Quad,” Lovretta reveals. “Season three is an introduction to the broader story of the Hullen, which we will continue through in a very twisty, delicious way in season four.”
Killjoys airs on US Syfy from 30 June and UK Syfy from 4 July.