Not the coming out story we expected.
In the Nov. 18 episode of Ghosts, titled "D&D," viewers watched as Isaac (Brandon Scott Jones), the ghost of a Revolutionary War soldier, made a shocking confession: He's a murderer. A flashback scene revealed that Isaac accidentally shot his British rival, Nigel, while admiring the adversary through an eyeglass he mounted on a rifle.
This was understandably shocking news to Nigel, but it was even more surprising for us tuning in, as we thought Isaac was going to reveal his true feelings about the British soldier. Isaac's sexuality has been implied throughout the series, with the 245-year-old ghost even seemingly crushing on Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar) at one point.
And, in "D&D," the fellow ghosts suggested that Isaac and Nigel have been crushing on each other for some time. So why didn't Isaac tell Nigel how he really feels in the new episode?
Well, according to Brandon, this is just one step in Isaac's bigger journey of self-discovery. "Yes, Isaac comes out of the closet in this episode, but not necessarily as a homosexual," he exclusively told E! News, "but as a murderer."
Per Brandon, Isaac has suffered "a lot of guilt and a lot of shame" over this accident, and possibly blamed his sexuality in the process.
While viewers may not have gotten the resolution they were expecting, Brandon reminded us that Isaac has been struggling with his identity for over two centuries. "I think that when he knows he's hiding this portion of himself," he explained, "there's this idea that maybe his own history is going to be rewritten, especially after all those years. And I think that's pretty painful for him."
Brandon said he resonated with his character's personal journey, adding, "Just knowing my own narrative as a queer person, how difficult it was for me to stay positive for the first 18 years of my life, I thought it was really interesting and very, very deep to understand somebody who's had like, 240 years of really trying to deny who he is."
As he continued, Brandon called his character's confession "a step forward" in embracing who he really is. For instance, at the end of the episode, after being forgiven for the fatal accident, Isaac asked Nigel about spending some quality time together.
"I have a feeling that we'll see Nigel again," Brandon teased. "And I think the next time we see them, there's going to be a little bit more for them to talk about, and, hopefully, a little bit more for them to unpack in their relationship with each other."
For more of Isaac's journey, be sure to catch new episodes of Ghosts when it airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. on CBS.