Exclusive Interview
‘Wild Cards’: Giacomo Gianniotti Reveals Max & Ellis Kiss Scene Got Axed in Season 2 Finale (VIDEO)
[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for the Wild Cards Season 2 finale “Sunrise Sunset.”]
There’s so much to unpack after watching the thrilling and game-changing Wild Cards Season 2 finale. For all the Max (Vanessa Morgan) and Ellis (Giacomo Gianniotti) fans out there in the world, a very significant development went down between these two.
After the most delicious will-they-won’t-they tension, Max and Ellis took a huge step in the romantic direction. Ellis decided to take the boat trip his brother, Daniel, talked about and invited Max to come along with him. Max had to take care of a few things first, so Ellis waited for her. Just when she was about to leave to join Ellis, Max’s mom showed up at her door.
This delay caused Ellis to believe that Max wasn’t coming after all, so he left without her, reigniting that slow burn dynamic. Swooon spoke with Giacomo Gianniotti, Vanessa Morgan, and Jason Priestley about the explosive Season 2 finale and what’s next.
Gianniotti revealed that “the repercussions” of Max not showing up on time will be a huge aspect of Season 3. “Will he understand that she didn’t come for a very important reason and all those things?” he said. “I just think it sets up so much for the next season.”
When Ellis extended his invite, Morgan noted that Max is “torn” between the people who mean the most to her. “She wants to be with her dad and Ricky. I think she’s torn because she wants that stability. Obviously, she has feelings for Ellis, and I feel like [she’s] feeling feelings she’s never felt before,” Morgan explained.
Justine Yeung / The CW
However, the boat scene originally had a different ending. “The way it was written in this finale is that at the boat they were supposed to share a kiss. I had brought this to Vanessa, and in the sort of will-they-won’t-they, I felt like it was too much too soon. And I, in fact, actually thought that it would be much more intimate if they did not kiss but felt all of that chemistry and sparks between them.”
He continued, “We, ultimately, landed on an embrace, which felt like a kiss, to be honest. It had all the same kind of sparks. But I think the embrace was a promise of a kiss should she come back on the boat, and then we don’t get that opportunity… They both clearly want that. They just don’t know how to say it to each other.”
Morgan added that no kiss “leaves people wanting more.” Gianniotti followed up by saying this continued slow burn extends the show’s “longevity.”
Wild Cards has already been renewed for Seasons 3 and 4, so Max and Ellis’ story is far from over. At the end of the season, Max’s father, George, was released from prison, so Priestley is hopeful that George will be “more involved” moving forward.
Priestley said he wants to unpack “all of the things that make George who he is and all of the things that transpired before, and his wife coming back is going to be huge for us to explore.”
Speaking of George’s wife and Max’s mom, we don’t get to see her face in the finale, so her identity remains a mystery. Morgan’s dream actor to play her onscreen mother? Halle Berry. The Riverdale alum can’t wait to dive into Max’s backstory with her mom. “My dad’s going to be very involved with that because, obviously, his wife just came back. I think it’s going to really change the dynamic,” Morgan told Swooon.
Watch the full video above to get more Season 2 finale scoop and the cast’s hopes for Season 3. What did you think of the Wild Cards finale? Do you wish the show had kept the Max and Ellis kiss? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Wild Cards, Season 3, TBA, CW
