Cross Season 2 Cast Guide: New Characters (Matthew Lillard & More) + Returning Cast
Cross Season 2 Cast: New Characters (Matthew Lillard, etc.) + Returning Cast
Prime Video’s Cross Season 2 cast expands the show’s world in a big way—adding fresh suspects, powerful new targets, and at least one major new threat for Alex Cross (Aldis Hodge) to profile. Below is a spoiler-light, character-first guide to the new additions (including Matthew Lillard) and the returning faces you’ll want to remember before the next case begins.
Cross Season 2 release date (and how the rollout works)
Cross Season 2 premieres on February 11, 2026. The season launches with three episodes, then continues with weekly drops until the March 18, 2026 finale.
- Premiere: February 11, 2026 (Episodes 1–3)
- Weekly episodes: Wednesdays
- Finale: March 18, 2026
Quick plot refresher: what Season 2 is about (without heavy spoilers)
Season 2 pivots to a high-profile, high-wealth case: billionaire business titan Lance Durand requests protection after a death threat, and Cross teams up with the FBI as the investigation escalates into something much bigger—and much bloodier. The key detail from the trailer: the killer leaves behind gruesome “signature” clues, pushing Cross back into that dangerous space where empathy, psychology, and instinct collide.
Cross Season 2 cast at a glance
New / newly featured characters
| Actor | Character | Why they matter in Season 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Matthew Lillard | Lance Durand | Billionaire target who pulls the FBI into the case—and may be connected to more than he admits. |
| Jeanine Mason | Rebecca | A “brilliant, ambitious and vengeful judge” identified as the suspected killer in the Season 2 trailer. |
| Wes Chatham | Donnie | A hard-edged military veteran turned farmer (reported), bringing volatile energy and a different worldview into the orbit of the case. |
| Michelle C. Bonilla | Clare | A tough, protective presence with family ties to “Rebecca” (as described in casting news). |
| Ben Watkins | Roy McElhannon | The showrunner steps on-screen as an FBI figure—useful when the case becomes a joint FBI/police operation. |
Returning cast (the core team)
- Aldis Hodge as Alex Cross
- Isaiah Mustafa as Detective John Sampson
- Alona Tal as FBI Agent Kayla Craig
- Samantha Walkes as Elle Monteiro
- Juanita Jennings as Regina “Nana Mama” Cross
- Caleb Elijah as Damon Cross
- Melody Hurd as Janelle “Jannie” Cross
- Johnny Ray Gill as Bobby Trey Abellard
Watch: Cross Season 2 official trailer (YouTube)
The trailer is the quickest way to meet the new players (and get a feel for the season’s tone), especially the Durand security detail setup and the “signature” clues that pull Cross into a much larger hunt.
Prime Video’s Season 2 post (Twitter/X)
New characters in Cross Season 2: who they are (and why they’re dangerous)
Matthew Lillard as Lance Durand
Lance Durand is introduced as a billionaire business titan who requests protection after receiving a death threat. That “protect the VIP” job quickly becomes a pressure-cooker case, because the threat appears tied to much bigger corruption. If you want a clean way to watch Season 2: track when Durand is telling the truth, when he’s performing, and when he’s panicking. Those three modes don’t always line up.
Jeanine Mason as Rebecca
Rebecca is described in casting coverage and early promo as a judge with real intelligence and real motive—exactly the kind of suspect who can hide in plain sight. In the trailer, the season frames the hunt as a “womanhunt,” and Rebecca’s presence adds a sharp moral edge: if your targets are corrupt power players, is it still “justice” when you’re leaving bodies behind?
Wes Chatham as Donnie
Donnie is positioned as a complicated ex-military presence in the story—someone who can read violence quickly and act decisively, even when the law wants paperwork and patience. In a season built around wealth, influence, and revenge, Donnie adds a different kind of power: lived experience and a short fuse.
Michelle C. Bonilla as Clare
Clare is written as a tough, protective figure with deep ties to Rebecca—family ties that can fuel loyalty, denial, or revenge. She’s the kind of character who can swing from “support system” to “key witness” in one scene, depending on what Cross uncovers.
Ben Watkins as Roy McElhannon
The showrunner appears on-screen as Roy McElhannon, an FBI supervisory figure who becomes useful as soon as the case turns into a joint operation. Functionally, Roy is a story “accelerator”—the person who can drop new intel, apply pressure, or pull jurisdiction strings when Cross needs doors opened fast.
Instagram: Cross Season 2 hype and cast vibes
If the embed doesn’t load in your theme, the same post can be opened directly on Instagram from the Cross account.
Returning cast: who you should remember (and what to watch for)
Aldis Hodge as Alex Cross
Cross is still the engine of the show: homicide detective + forensic psychologist + father trying to keep his home life from getting eaten by the job. In Season 2, his empathy is both a superpower and a vulnerability. When the killer’s motive starts to sound “understandable,” it challenges his line between compassion and complicity.
Isaiah Mustafa as John Sampson
Sampson remains Cross’s closest ally, but the Season 2 setup hints at an “unexpected connection” that could complicate the case. Pay attention to who Sampson talks to when Cross isn’t in the room—those conversations are often where the season’s emotional truth lives.
Alona Tal as FBI Agent Kayla Craig
Kayla is the key bridge between Cross and the Bureau side of the investigation. In a billionaire-centered case, the FBI presence changes the power dynamics: more resources, more politics, and more pressure to produce results without embarrassing the wrong people.
Samantha Walkes as Elle Monteiro
Elle is still one of the best ways the show shows Cross as a person, not just a profiler. When a season turns bigger and louder, Elle is the grounding force that makes the stakes feel personal.
Juanita Jennings as Nana Mama, plus Damon and Jannie
The Cross family is still the show’s “why.” Nana Mama brings the blunt truth; Damon and Jannie bring the stakes Cross can’t solve with a gun or a badge. When the case gets ugly, the family scenes are where you see the cost.
Johnny Ray Gill as Bobby Trey
Bobby Trey’s connections and instincts make him a valuable wildcard in a season about powerful people with powerful secrets. Even when he’s not driving the main case, he often explains how the city actually works.
What Reddit theories say about this (and what Reddit thinks Season 2 is really about)
Reddit discussions around Cross tend to split into two lanes:
- “Bitter Fruit” talk: fans debating what the title implies—revenge, corruption, and consequences that spread beyond the killer.
- Book vs. show expectations: viewers tracking which elements feel “Patterson-ish” and which feel like the show’s own identity.
Season two is a "Bitter Fruit" not based on a specific book (again) and has no release date yet even though filming ended last summer.
Prime Video Knocked it Out of the Park with Cross
Cross Season 2 cast: who’s likely to dominate the screen time
If you’re watching purely for character work (and not just twists), here’s the practical way to think about the Season 2 ensemble:
- Durand (Matthew Lillard): the “center of gravity” target—money, influence, and a threat that forces the whole system to move.
- Rebecca (Jeanine Mason): the “motive engine”—a character built to make viewers argue about what justice even is.
- Donnie (Wes Chatham): the “volatile variable”—a character who can shift scenes from talk to action fast.
- Cross / Sampson / Craig: the “triangle” that keeps the investigation moving while balancing law, psychology, and politics.
Related content: what to watch if you like Cross
If Cross Season 2 is your kind of thriller (profiling, pressure, and power games), these are easy next clicks while you wait between episodes:
- Reacher (Prime Video): blunt-force justice, conspiracies, and a lead who doesn’t scare easily.
- Bosch and Bosch: Legacy: methodical investigations, gray-morality decisions, long-game plotting.
- Jack Ryan (Prime Video): higher-stakes conspiracies and power players who act above the law.
- Criminal Minds: behavioral analysis and cases that turn on psychology more than shootouts.
Cross Season 2 FAQ
How many episodes are in Cross Season 2?
Season 2 has eight episodes. The first three drop on premiere day, then the remaining episodes release weekly.
Is Cross Season 2 based on a specific James Patterson book?
The show is based on Patterson’s Alex Cross character and world, but Season 2 is positioned like a fresh case with its own identity.
Who are the biggest new cast additions in Cross Season 2?
The headline newcomers are Matthew Lillard, Jeanine Mason, and Wes Chatham.
Do I need to rewatch Season 1 first?
You can jump into Season 2 for the new case, but a quick Season 1 refresher helps because Cross’s family life and relationships color every decision he makes on the job.
Final take: why this cast makes Season 2 feel bigger
The best thing about this Season 2 cast lineup is the contrast. You’ve got Cross’s empathy and precision, Sampson’s loyalty, Craig’s FBI authority, and then the new additions bringing money, motive, and volatility into the same pressure cooker.
If Season 1 was about catching a monster, Season 2 looks built to ask a nastier question: what happens when power itself is the crime scene?