Jonathan Nolan & Greg Plageman Preview Person of Interest’s Epic Season 2 Finale

If you’ve been keeping abreast of events on CBS’ Person of Interest then you’ve probably got a ton of questions on your mind as the show heads into its season two finale this Thursday May 9th. Will Root force Harold to hand over the Machine? Will Shaw and Root trade words, blows or hot electric irons again any time soon? And now that the Machine is talking, what will it have to say to Reese?

Luckily, we got to sit down with Person of Interest creator Jonathan Nolan and Executive Producer Greg Plageman last week in order to quiz them on what’s in store for Reese, Finch and co. this Thursday night.

ScreenSpy: We’ve had a little taste of it in a previous episode, but will we see Root and Shaw facing off again?

Jonathan Nolan: You’re going to have to stay tuned. We’ve got 24 hours of mayhem ensuing during the finale with Root and Finch looking for the machine. They’re looking for its actual physical location – which is something Root has wanted to find since the beginning of the season, and Reese and Shaw are in hot pursuit. There’s no love lost between those two ladies!

ScreenSpy: I have to ask, do you guys have a penchant for strong, unpredictable crazy women on this show?

Jonathan Nolan: [Laughing] Yes!
Greg Plageman: You should meet our wives!
Jonathan Nolan: Then you would understand instantly where that comes from.

ScreenSpy: Decima has been a very interesting part of the storyline this season. Will they emerge again in season three as a force to be reckoned with, or have we seen the last of them?

Jonathan Nolan: Well they’ve been knocked out in last week’s episode. In their long-haul effort with the virus and their attempt to intercept that phone call, they didn’t expect the double-whammy of Root, Finch, Reese and Shaw. So they’ve been stymied, but as we’ve discovered they’re a formidable foe. You’d be forgiven for thinking they’re still out there licking their wounds and planning their next step.

ScreenSpy: Over the course of this season, we’ve seen Carter brought into the HR storyline, and in doing so, becoming closer to Fusco. Is that unique relationship, as damaged as it’s become in recent episodes, something that will continue into season three?

Jonathan Nolan: Well in that kick-ass episode that Greg co-wrote, we got to see a lot more of Fusco and a lot more of that relationship and the lengths to which Carter would go to protect Fusco. I think we’re now finally in a position where there are no lies between them. There’s a great relationship there. We’re looking forward to seeing more of it in season three.

ScreenSpy: The last time I spoke with you guys, you described Reese as a bit of a wounded animal, but despite this inherent woundedness, we’ve actually had some great comedy moments between Reese and Paige Turco’s Zoe. Do you think he’ll ever be able to reach a place where he’ll be able to love somebody again?

Greg Plageman: That’s a great question. I certainly think there’s a chemistry there between Reese and Zoe. We have multiple female characters on the show now, so the question becomes whether Reese’s character is capable of moving on. Obviously, he was very damaged by the loss of Jessica. The question becomes for him ‘Who is the right woman for John Reese?’

ScreenSpy: What can you tease about Finch’s storyline in this last episode of the season?

Jonathan Nolan: I think you’re going to get some big answers to some big questions. I think the question of the season has been who is Harold Finch? And how did he become that guy, and what does that mean for the future? And we aim to answer several of those questions.

ScreenSpy: I know a lot of fans are curious about exactly how Harold sustained his injuries. Will they get to see more on this in the finale, or is this a story for further down the road?

Greg Plageman: I think you may have to stay tuned for that one. Suffice it to say when we met Harold in the pilot he was the man we believed had access to the back door, who received these numbers and needed someone to act upon them. But what we’ve learned from the flashbacks with Nathan Ingram is that Nathan was the one to do it first. The question becomes now, what changed in Harold’s life that made him the man we met in the pilot?

Don’t miss Person of Interest’s season finale episode “God Mode” Thursday May 9th (9:01 – 10:01 PM, ET/PT) on CBS.