There were many moments of The Leftovers' first season that were talked about, but none perhaps as much as Justin Theroux's jogging pants.
We're not saying it's RIGHT, but it was definitely a thing, as documented via countless YouTube slow-mo videos, where you basically put any anatomy questions you might still have after 7th grade Health class to rest.
"Not anymore," Theroux teases playfully of season two. "We're done with that. Too much jogging. It was like, ‘OK, throw the sweatpants out!'"
Watch our exclusive video interviews with Justin Theroux and Carrie Coon above and below!
Still, his character Kevin Garvey will be getting down and sweaty in other ways…to fulfill anyone's lingering need to see Justin sweat. "There's a lot of shoveling," he says. "It's an extremely physical role, very demanding… burning calories, digging holes."
Of course, what's truly remarkable about The Leftovers is the series' stunning emotional tension, which came to a head in season one, as Mapleton, New York was more or less burned to the ground, and Kevin and Nora (Carrie Coon) became something of a new family with the baby his son had left behind, and his reunited daughter.
Heading to "Miracle," Texas, the couple is full of hope and—for perhaps the first time—complete honesty, which seems like the perfect recipe for a promising future, right? Well, unfortunately, not only are their next-door neighbors (new series regulars Kevin Carroll and Regina King) harboring some dark and disturbing secrets, but Patti (Ann Dowd) is dead but also back—which doesn't bode well for Kevin's mental demons.
"That's going to be up for debate," Theroux says of the status of Kevin's sanity. "I tried to pin [executive producer] Damon [Lindelof] down on what was going on and, of course, initially it was he's a sleep walker and he does things he doesn't remember and he's also taking certain psychotropic drugs that try and tamp that down. It becomes clear that it's no longer the medication and it's no longer just sleep walking. Something has manifested, and there's a little bit of a spoiler in there. I think it'll be interesting as the show progresses as to what the discussion as to what she is. Is Patti the devil on his shoulder? Is she just a flat out Harvey? Is she an angel? Or is she just a schizophrenic episode? That being said, and without giving anything away, it's one of the most beautiful arcs in a relationship I've ever gotten to play for someone who's such a villain. I've sort of seen it as this kind of bizarre love story of two people that need each other and I think need each other last season too, but in Texas they need each other even more in a way."
As far as the show's core coupling—Nora and Kevin—Carrie Coon tells us she's hopeful they have what it takes to make it long-term.
"It's funny that Nora is the person bringing some lightness into his life. I think what's compelling about that is that they've tried to start from a place of authenticity. They sort of say, ‘I'm putting all my cards on the table. Can you handle it?' I actually think that's a really healthy place to start a relationship. So in some ways yes, they've laid this great foundation. But they may be underestimating the complications of that baggage. Nora is looking for safety, and as Kevin unravels it threatens that stability that she's looking for. So her fight or flight is pretty strong. We'll see if she can stick it out. I won't tell."
Of course, in real life, Justin has locked down his own little piece of happiness—to his new wife Jennifer Aniston. The two were married in a August in a secret ceremony.
"Oh my god. It's really nice to say ‘my wife,'" Theroux tells E! News of his new marriage. "I'm not [used to saying wife]. I don't want to get used to it for a while. It's nice to drop the fiancé moniker. There's just sort of an easy that comes with it that's really nice. I can't quite describe it. I guess it's one of those things that's like you know it when you see it, or feel it when you feel it for those who are married they'd know. But it's just something that settles and feels lovely and wonderful."
When asked if marriage feels how he expected it to, he adds: "I didn't have any expectation of how it would feel. I just knew I wanted to do it."
The Leftovers season two premieres this Sunday on HBO.