Speaking on June 13 via a Variety streaming room event, some of the cast of Ted Lasso, including Hannah Waddingham, Phil Dunster, Toheeb Jimoh, Nick Mohammed, and Sarah Niles, gathered via Zoom to talk about the award-winning series (including six Golden Globe nominations and two awards).

In the previous season, Waddingham’s soccer executive, Rebecca, had some upheaval in her romantic life when her relationship with AFC Richard player, Sam (Toheeb Jimoh), came to an end. A difficult time for her, the breakup followed the death of her father. She then embarked on a journey to find love. “If I’m perfectly honest, it was quite difficult because I’d so much wanted to honor the fact that I am very aware of how men and women feel in the middle of their lives, being thrust into a place they never thought they would find themselves in, or have to dig themselves out of,” she said. “And so, it was quite brilliant, really, because I was quite uncomfortable doing all the dating app stuff because I didn’t want to insult anyone who’s going through that.

“Also, there was the whole thing of why someone in middle age goes onto dating apps, what kind of ones they go on.” Waddingham’s lack of experience in the dating app world served the story well. “I felt it was good that I was uncomfortable doing it, because then that adds a little element of discomfort for Rebecca. And as usual, our lives jumble along together in so many ways (Waddingham recently broke up with her longtime partner Gianluca Cugnetto). I was like, “Swear to God, these people have got bloody cameras in my house,” she chuckles. “But the funeral stuff, which I didn’t see coming, was the greatest thing I think I’ve ever been given to get my teeth into.”

Jimoh says of his unexpected romantic pairing with Rebecca, “I loved doing those scenes with Hannah, it was great. I thought the storyline was a really cool twist. Also, it was really fun to explore this side of Sam, because he went from being this kid who had just come to a new country and was just trying to figure himself out on this team to suddenly gaining the maturity and integrity to have the balls to date the boss and be cool with it,” he laughs. “It took a lot of maturity. So, yeah, it was a fun kind of arc to go on.”

The cast is currently shooting Season Three, in London, which also marks the final season for the much-acclaimed series. Although Ted Lasso remains the most successful series on Apple TV and became a surprise hit around the world, it seems that the production is sticking to their three-season-only game plan.

Nick Mohammed, who plays Nate, probably had the most extreme character arc of the cast. He began in Season 1 as a bullied equipment manager before turning on Ted and accepting a job with the team’s biggest rival, West Ham.

“In terms of transitioning into the villain, I found it to be genuinely tricky. I felt that I’d found a sweet spot in Season 1 for Nate, who was awkward and quite a funny guy, but there were decidedly fewer jokes and moments of humor for him in Season 2,” he notes. “People really began to hate him, and even I hate Nate right now!”

Presumably, another unpredictable storyline is in store for Nate in the upcoming season, as it will be for all the beloved characters in Season 3. If Ted Lasso is anything like the previous seasons, audiences can expect the unexpected.