Movies - TV
Ted Lasso’s Writers Hinted At Nate’s Betrayal Way Back In Season 1
By MICHAEL BOYLE
Spoiler Warning!
This story contains spoilers for
Season 2 of “Ted Lasso.”
On the first watch of Season 2 of “Ted Lasso,” it might seem like Nate turns into a villain out of nowhere, as fans see Nate tear up the Believe poster and leak Ted's panic attacks to the press. It's easy to wonder, “What happened to the old Nate?”; however, upon reexamination of Season 1, it's clear that Nate's growing dark side was there from the beginning of the series.
Even before fans learned about his troubled relationship with his father, Nate's insecurities made him needlessly mean, but with the charming, light-hearted tone of the show, it was easy to miss the signs. The most obvious harbinger was Nate's mean-spirited pep rally to the team in “Make Rebecca Great Again,” where he insults all of the players to get them motivated.
In an interview with USA Today, “Ted Lasso” co-creator Brendan Hunt explained Dark Nate was always a part of the plan. He said, “It was certainly fun bread-crumbing his transformation throughout Season 2 especially, but there's breadcrumbs in Season 1 as well.” Nate has enjoyed a slow-burn arc that gradually deepened his flaws and earned his eventual betrayal.