Found season finale sets up a hard road for Gabi in season 2

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Found season 1 finale.

Found just blew up Gabi Mosely’s (Shanola Hampton) life.

After Gabi returns home to learn that Sir (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) has escaped from her basement, she goes on red alert.

As her team works on a long-standing, important missing persons case, Dhan Rana (Karan Oberoi) is tasked with tracking down Sir. Once their case is closed, Gabi comes clean to her work family about Sir, which rocks them and leads to her breaking down with only Dhan left by her side.

Sir is believed to have left the country (courtesy of evidence Dhan found), but in the last seconds it’s revealed that Sir is still in town. In fact, he’s hiding in Lacey Quinn’s (Gabrielle Walsh) apartment waiting for her to get home.

We spoke to Found creator Nkechi Okoro Carroll about how Gabi rebuilds from here, what Sir being out in the world means, and what’s ahead for the already-renewed drama in season 2.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Sir is out in the world! How does that change Found going into season 2?

NKECHI OKORO CARROLL: The essence of the show that everyone loves will remain the same. In terms of the cases bringing attention to the forgotten ones, how deeply important that work is to every member of M&A, the danger that exists between kidnapper and kidnappee and the way Gabi alternates between those two titles. Those will all remain.

Gabi and Sir, in both timelines, are constantly playing this game of cat and mouse. The ball is constantly passing back and forth regardless of which one of them is the kidnapper. That is not going to change, but the playground has just changed.

He blames a lot on Lacey and has threatened her life, but he is obsessed with Gabi. How much trouble is Lacey in?

Oh, I can’t answer that!

I will say it’s been surprising and very entertaining for me to watch what the audience is willing to overlook, justify or downplay with Sir because he is so charming and because something about the interactions between him and Gabi are so riveting. I say all of that to say, Sir is not to be underestimated and what he is willing to do in order to achieve his end goals, which he believes are justified. He is trying to maintain this life with Gabi believing he was saving her and walking her into something that was better, stronger and worthy of her brilliance. Never underestimate what someone who thinks like that is willing to do. That’s all I will say on the status of Lacey.

Lacey is also part of the M&A family who all learn the truth about Gabi and Sir in this finale. That silent scene was powerful. Can you talk about that choice?

I intentionally wanted us to focus on them. We’ve heard her go over this and try to justify what she did to Dhan. For me, it was more powerful with that already in your head to focus on what this does to each member of M&A who have, to a certain degree, hero-worshipped Gabi. She played a very pivotal role in all of their lives in terms of saving them and teaching them how to turn their trauma into something positive. I didn’t want words to interfere with that. I wanted to focus on the heartbreak.

How does Gabi begin to rebuild the M&A family? Can she?

It’s no secret that when trust bonds like that are not just broke, but obliterated, there are consequences to that. People’s desire to forgive and their ability to forgive are two very different things.

The last two episodes have allowed viewers to get to know Dhan better in terms of his Gabi's ties to him and his husband. What are you interested in exploring with him in these episodes?

Dhan and Gabi have always had a very special relationship and I was interested in exploring this protective nature he has of her and the lack of trust he has for so much in the world. What would happen when that was tested? He’s almost the guinea pig for what would happen if the rest of the group found out. The little pieces of his backstory we know alludes to a traumatic past that involves being held against his will in some capacity, so I was interested in exploring, given all of that, how someone like Dhan would respond to Gabi revealing this side of her and if it would be enough to set him all the way back.

Trent wants answers and Gabi promised him the truth in the finale. What does all this mean for their dynamic?

Who finds out what, when and the consequences of that will play a humongous role as if what Gabi has done is not a big enough bombshell. It will have a huge impact on every member of that team. Also, the cases that they have to solve aren’t going away. Whether that is at the PD, at M&A or band of private investigators, there’s people still missing out there that need to be found.

Found will return for season 2.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.

Related content:

• Found star Shanola Hampton explains Gabi’s major decision about Sir
• Found boss unpacks Gabi Mosely's massive secret
• All American: Homecoming creator Nkechi Okoro Carroll shares her inspirations