Runaways bosses on that possible major death

Warning: This story contains major spoilers from Tuesday’s episode of Marvel’s Runaways. Read at your own risk!

“Please, whatever you do, Dad, don’t pick up the Fistigons.” It’s a warning from the future that Victor Stein did not heed during Tuesday’s episode of Marvel’s Runaways.

After Jonah’s (Julian McMahon) wonder drug gave Victor (James Marsters) a new lease on life, a future version of Chase (Gregg Sulkin) sent this cryptic message through the time machine. Alas, Victor came down hard off the drug, attacking his son with the Fistigons, leading Janet (Ever Carradine) to shoot Victor. Is he actually dead?

“We cannot confirm nor can we deny Victor is dead,” executive producer Josh Schwartz tells EW. “We have shown on the show the ability of people to escape death. We’ve also shown that people really die. Either option is possible for Victor.”

Suffice it to say, this event will definitely throw everything into disarray on two fronts. “One: Victor is incredibly important to Jonah’s plan and the plan of Pride,” Schwartz says. “Two: Chase and Victor have started to actually bond and form an emotional connection, so if Victor’s fate is tied to the Pride, then that is something that’s going to test Chase’s loyalty to the Runaways.”

Though the future message from Chase appears to be real, some fans suspect it could actually be an imagined side effect of Victor’s brain tumor. “That is up to the viewers to decide,” executive producer Stephanie Savage says. Schwartz adds with a laugh, “Or season 12 of Runaways, where we can pay that off.”

While the Runaways bosses promise we will see the time machine again, it will not be used in the way fans would expect. “It’s not our plan to use a time machine to necessarily undo what we’ve done on the show,” Schwartz says. Adds Savage: “The way the time machine is constructed, the way we’ve seen it work, all it can do so far is send messages from the future to the present.” In other words, it won’t be the thing to save Victor.

New episodes of Marvel’s Runaways are released Tuesdays on Hulu.