Culture September 3, 2026

Glen Powell shares why the stakes are higher in 'Chad Powers' season 2

WATCH: Glen Powell, Steve Zahn talk 'Chad Powers'

The cast of "Chad Powers" is getting ready to say, "Fish on me! Fish on three!" for another season.

Ahead of season 2 of the hit Hulu show, the cast spoke with ABC News about what's in store and weighed in on whether more characters will uncover who Chad Powers really is.

Glen Powell, who plays Russ Holiday, a disgraced college quarterback who disguises himself as Chad Powers to join a struggling college football team and revive his football career, said the "stakes are higher" this season.

"That's the fun and dance of this season is that there's a give and take," Powell said. "There's kind of a pressure-release valve when you are sharing a secret with somebody -- you're not in on it alone."

At the end of season 1, two people end up discovering Chad's secret: Danny Cruz (Frankie A. Rodriguez) and South Georgia Catfish coach Ricky (Perry Mattfeld). While Danny uncovers Chad's secret early on in the season and helps keep his secret, Ricky doesn't find out until the finale -- a revelation that upends their friendship and leaves audiences wondering where the two stand.

While she couldn't share much about what's next for Chad and Ricky, Mattfeld teased the storyline as each character having their "own ethical dilemma" about why they should continue to keep Russ' secret.

Rodriguez said it has been "fun to see how [season 2] expands and never knowing exactly where the show was going to go."

He added, "It's a continuation [of season 1], but I think the vibe is definitely like, 'Oh wait, it's a little scary now.' It's a different vibe."

While Ricky and Danny are in on Russ' secret, audiences are kept on their toes as other characters get closer and closer to the truth of Chad Powers' identity.

In season 2, Wynn Everett, who plays Tricia Yeager, the head of the South Georgia Catfish booster organization, said that her character is "getting quite close."

"I love it," she said, adding that if Tricia were to find out about Chad's secret, "she would keep that lie forever going."

As for Coach Byrd (Quentin Plair) and Coach Hudson (Steve Zahn), Plair said Byrd has "no idea" about Chad's secret, and Zahn said Hudson is "distracted," as he is on the mend following a health scare at the end of season 1.

"It's fun to play this, where the audience is ahead of you," Zahn said. "It makes you as an actor play it completely different, as opposed to informing the audience. And so, you can be a lot more subtle, and it's cool."

Along with the underlying dilemma of Chad's secret -- and the show's themes of second chances and redemption -- what keeps audiences coming back are the cheeky one-liners delivered by the cast, some of which are improvised on the spot.

This season, Everett and Powell said one particular one-liner involving human anatomy had them struggling to keep a straight face.

"It's hard to keep it together," Everett said.

Powell said, "That was maybe the hardest [scene]."

Powell added that the two ultimately had to leave set that day because they couldn't make it through the scene without laughing.

"I was like, I hope this actually makes the cut because it's such a funny line," he said.

All six episodes of "Chad Powers" season 2 are out now on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+.

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