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Lynsey Weatherspoon\/Disney<\/p>\n
When TVLine named “Will Trent<\/a>” one of the 25 Best Shows of 2025<\/a>, it wasn’t because the ABC crime drama reinvented the broadcast procedural \u2014 but because it elevated the formula. Across three seasons, the Karin Slaughter adaptation \u2014 developed for television by Liz Heldens and Daniel Thomsen \u2014 has continued to reel in new viewers, building a reputation for prioritizing character over case-of-the-week mechanics, a choice that continues to buoy the series as it enters Season 4.<\/p>\n Because it’s network television, there are certain decisions I’m willing to overlook \u2014 like putting Ormewood (Jake McLaughlin) and Amanda (Sonja Sohn) in grave danger<\/a> at the end of last season<\/a>, only for them to return largely unscathed. That’s not to say their rehabilitation isn’t still a work in progress; both characters are bearing visible scars.<\/p>\n Where the show departs from stock network fare \u2014 and distinguishes itself in the process \u2014 is by allowing the emotional wear and tear to linger. That’s a credit not only to the writing, but to the performers, who continue to demonstrate remarkable range.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n The Choice That Changed Everything<\/p>\n
Daniel Delgado Jr.\/Disney<\/p>\n One of the smartest \u2014 and most unexpected \u2014 pivots “Will Trent” ever made was set in motion at the end of Season 2<\/a>, when Will, scrupulous to a fault, chose strict adherence to the law over a chance at a happily-ever-after with his one true love, Angie (played by Erika Christensen). The decision resulted in her arrest \u2014 and the dismantling of their relationship<\/a>.<\/p>\n Season 3 followed with a move that felt, at first, more conventional: both were given new romantic partners. Will was paired with ADA Marion Alba (Gina Rodriguez<\/a>), while Angie found stability with Dr. Seth McDale (Scott Foley<\/a>). In a lesser show, those relationships would have quietly fizzled by season’s end, clearing the runway for a Will-and-Angie reunion. Instead, only Will’s did. Angie ended the season pregnant<\/a> \u2014 with Seth’s baby<\/a>.<\/p>\n And while Will is, understandably, heartbroken that his soulmate is building a new life that largely excludes him, he’s also contending with the formation of a family of his own, following the late\u2013Season 3 introduction of his biological father, Sheriff Caleb Roussard<\/a> (a perfectly cast Yul Vazquez).<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Season 4 Finds Will at a Crossroads<\/p>\n
Lynsey Weatherspoon\/Disney<\/p>\n Season 4 picks up five months later, with Will \u2014 now a reluctant but newly committed therapy-goer \u2014 struggling to accept his new normal. There’s a part of him that’s genuinely happy for Angie, but that feeling exists alongside the quiet grief of realizing their paths have truly diverged. And while Will has finally found blood relatives of his own, he’s overwhelmed by the fullness of their embrace.<\/p>\n “You’ve been surviving on crumbs, but now you have the whole cake,” Margaret Cho’s Dr. Roach tells him \u2014 to which Will replies, “Yes, but it is a carrot cake. With raisins.”<\/p>\n Meanwhile \u2014 as the Season 4 trailer<\/a> has already spoiled \u2014 Episode 1 marks the return of serial killer James Ulster, the man who murdered Will’s mother and, in doing so, set him on the turbulent \u2014 and deeply traumatic<\/a> \u2014 path that led to the life he’s now trying to make sense of.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Ram\u00f3n Rodr\u00edguez Excels as Actor and Director<\/p>\n
Daniel Delgado Jr.\/Disney<\/p>\n Leading man Ram\u00f3n Rodr\u00edguez \u2014 who also serves as an executive producer \u2014 steps behind the camera for Part 1 and makes a meal of Ulster’s return, both in how he portrays the killer’s lingering hold over Will and, as a director, in how quickly and efficiently he reminds us just how dangerous Ulster is. (Greg Germann, meanwhile, is no slouch, giving a fully committed performance as one of TV’s most disturbing villains.)<\/p>\n Early in the hour, Will tells Dr. Roach that he’s “seen the damage a man’s temper can do in this world, and I really try not to go there.” But once Ulster successfully flees prison, that restraint begins to dissolve \u2014 pushing Rodr\u00edguez to go deeper than he ever has before, revealing new layers to an already richly drawn character.<\/p>\n Angie, too, finds herself navigating yet another unforeseen life change, one that arrives on the heels of her pregnancy. It’s a testament to Christensen that she’s able to mine so much internal conflict from such an understated performance.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Will Trent Is Also Deeply Funny<\/p>\n
Lynsey Weatherspoon\/Disney<\/p>\n Despite the darkness, “Will Trent” remains one of television’s funniest hours, anchored in the premiere by welcome bursts of levity involving desk-bound Ormewood and Det. Franklin, with newly promoted series regular Kevin Daniels<\/a> once again proving what an asset he is to the ensemble.<\/p>\n Amanda and Faith have less to do in the season opener, but the show uses their limited screen time wisely. A moment of emotional honesty between the two \u2014 rooted in concern for Will’s well-being and Amanda’s uncertain future with the GBI \u2014 gives Sohn and Iantha Richardson a welcome chance to shine.<\/p>\n
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