High Potential
Who Plays Willa Quinn on ‘High Potential’—And How Is She Connected to Captain Nick Wagner?
High Potential has finally given fans a little insight into the Roman Sinquerra mystery.
On High Potential Season 2 Episode 16, the plot thickens as Quinn, now in Los Angeles, begins making moves to cover up her involvement in Roman’s disappearance.
What’s Willa Quinn’s Connection to Captain Nick Wagner and His Father?
When Captain Wagner (Steve Howey) is approached by his father, guest star Clancy Brown, it seems as if he’s simply interested in hiring Morgan Gillory (Kaitlin Olson) for her brains.
However, there’s an ulterior motive at play when we see his father and Quinn join forces at the end of the episode, where he tells her that Morgan isn’t interested in changing jobs or joining the team amid his Senate run. She’ll be staying in Major Crimes, which is where her loyalty lies.
When he informs her that he’s done doing her dirty bidding, Quinn reminds him that she has the upper hand as she knows where all the bodies are buried. Namely, if she goes down, so does he.
But the further connection remains a big question mark. Why are Quinn and Wagner’s father involved with whatever happened to Roman?
And do they think removing Morgan from Major Crimes will somehow stop her from pursuing the truth? The fact that she was able to figure out that Captain Wagner’s father was the one offering the job, and piecing together that the motive must’ve been something corrupt, goes to show that she’s not one to be easily played.
Though, at least we now have confirmation that Wagner can be trusted, and he isn’t anything like his father.
This moment could explain why Nick got the job over Soto, but I have a feeling that Nick will be the one that helps break the case and thus, the control that his father has over him, along with the perception to the public that he’s just like his old man.
I don’t believe Wagner has any idea of his father’s involvement in the case and simply wants to help Morgan, as he’s grown a genuine liking for her, which may extend far beyond just friends.
Adam Karadec (Daniel Sunjata) had to be sidelined a bit this episode—following an explosion that got him hospitalized—to allow Morgan and Nick some time together, and though they may not fully trust each other, it’s hard to deny the chemistry between them.
Who Plays Willa Quinn on ‘High Potential’?
Jennifer Jason Leigh, best known for Fargo, has joined the police procedural in the role of Willa Quinn, a powerful political fixer with ties to the ultra-wealthy elite, meaning she can pull plenty of strings to control the narrative in her favor.
She’s the biggest pain for Soto (Judy Reyes), whose very much invested in figuring out what happened to Roman and getting justice for Morgan and her family.
How involved Willa is in that is to be determined, though it seems she’s directly responsible for Roman’s disappearance.
Who Plays Lucia on ‘High Potential’?
Lucia is played by This Is Us alum Susan Kelechi Watson, and it seems like she’s here to stay as she and Karadec just exchanged “I love yous.” While there’s nothing wrong with Lucia, and in any other world, I’d love her for Karadec, especially as they found their way back to each other after all these years, there’s plenty of chemistry between Morgan and Karadec as well, with viewers hoping they’ll get together at some point (unless you’re gunning for Morgan and Nick). It seems that even Lucia picked up on the connection between Morgan and Karadec, emphasizing the positive impact she’s had on him when it comes to the job.
High Potential
Steve Howey Fans Can’t Get Enough of His Music Video Cameo as His Fate Hangs in the Balance on ‘High Potential’
While his character’s fate hangs in the balance ahead of the upcoming season of High Potential, Steve Howey is turning heads for another reason.
Get ready because your crush on Howey is about to get even bigger when you see his surprise cameo in singer Taela’s music video.
While the video for “Rollin'” actually came out in 2024, Taela recently revisited the incredible moment, revealing the “revenge” backstory behind Howey’s casting. The country singer revealed she cast the Shameless actor to portray her love interest after her ex cheated on her. And why Howey? Because he’s the ex’s favorite actor, of course.
In the video shared to Instagram, Howey stares at the camera and smiles before posing with Talea and looking down at her. Other snippets reveal the steamy nature of the video, which finds Howey picking her up and kissing her passionately as he carries her to the pickup truck.
Clearly, Howey understood the assignment… very well, as evidenced by the comment section, which, understandably, blew up, with fans seeing it for the first time.
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Demi Moore and Bruce Willis’ daughter Scout also chimed in, “This is BRILLIANT.”
Fans jumped in—collectively losing their minds—as one wrote, “That was a good smooch, ya know for the story of course 😚,” as another expressed, “Girl skipped revenge and went straight to warfare 👀 okay diva I see you 👏🏼.”
“I Just know ur ex is crying into his pillow now 😂😂😂” another stated, with other comments, “I’ll never forget the gasp we all let out w that first kiss,” “I support this type of revenge 🔥🔥” and “Hell hath no fury.”
The kiss is literally all anyone could even focus on as the chemistry was palpable, which prompted a follow-up post from Taela, who gave fans a more in-depth look at the passionate PDA moment, for storyline purposes, of course.
She captioned the clip, in response to a comment exclaiming “and you got to kiss him,” with a simple, “oopsie.”
The comment section passed the vibe check here too, with one declaring, “With all do respect that sh– seemed to real,” “I’d have to redo every kiss… ya know for learning purposes. Mmmm that man 😍” and “I hope he just did it for the plot.”
And hopefully, there’s a storytime in the future as fans demanded to know the origin story “to how you asked him to do the video and his reaction!! I’m dying to know.”
Either way, this only makes us love Steve Howey, a man of the people, even more, as his cameo—and his “aging like fine wine” looks—guaranteed the video continues to be a massive success, especially with the Instagram algorithm working overtime.
Fans flocked to the full video on YouTube, as one noted, “Who’s coming from instagram? get the views gurl!”
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Howey clearly knows a thing or two about filming kissing scenes, given that High Potential fans collectively lost their minds when Nick Wagner finally went there with Morgan (Kaitlin Olson). Their joy was short-lived, as Wagner’s fate remains uncertain following the brutal season 2 cliffhanger. In the final moments of the season finale episode, Wagner was bleeding out in Morgan’s arms after walking into a trap disguised as a meeting with an old “FBI ghost” to learn more about what happened to her missing ex, Roman Sinquerra, who is also the father of Morgan’s daughter.
Fans grew even more concerned because the episode marked Howey’s final as a series regular, which means there’s a chance he won’t survive and will be written out of the series entirely.
On the other hand, fans are hoping that ABC’s decision to push High Potential’s Season 3 from a fall premiere to a January return means they were simply buying Howey more time to wrap up other projects so that he could return as Wagner.
Anything can happen, but for now, we can just keep watching Talea’s 2024 music video on repeat.
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TV
‘High Potential’s Kaitlin Olson Sent Fans Into a Tizzy With Exciting Update Ahead of Season 3: ‘She’s Back’
High Potential fans got an exciting update from Kaitlin Olson herself.
While the wait for the ABC drama is longer than ever before—the network held the series till the midseason, moving the premiere to 2027 rather than fall 2026—the good news is that production on the series is in full swing.
Just take Olson’s photo as confirmation that things are on track!
While Olson’s on-screen son, Matthew Lamb, who plays the gifted Elliot, was back on the set a month ago already, a week ago, the actress revealed she was kicking off the first day of filming.
Sharing a mirror selfie in Morgan’s signature attire—only she could get away with a denim pink skirt and a blue and pink-swirl print shirt while solving crimes—Olson captioned the shot, “Day 1, Season 3 💅.”
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The update understandably sent the fandom into a tizzy, holding them over during the unexpectedly lengthy hiatus (though, personally, I just hope the delay makes it possible for Steve Howey to return as Wagner.
“high potential group chat just EXPLODED thanks girl,” one fan commented.
“MOTHER MORGAN IS BACK !!!!!!!!!” another declared, while someone else pointed out the Morgan Barbie doll making a cameo in the photo was very on-brand.
“OMGGGGGG I AM SO NORMAL ABOUT THIS” someone noted, as yet another gasped, “SHE’S BACK”
Even her co-star Javicia Leslie, who plays Daphne, noted, “It’s timeeeeeeee 🥳,” while High Potential’s official IG account expressed, “So exciting! 🎉.”
It’s safe to say fans can’t wait till they get Morgan’s abilities back on their screen, as the search for what happened to Roman Sinquerra intensifies and puts her loved ones in imminent danger.
While no premiere date has officially been announced just yet, ABC is targeting early 2027, likely in January. Just think of it as a belated Christmas gift.
NEXT, ‘High Potential’ Hits a Huge High Note Ahead of Season 3
It was revealed in May that High Potential Season 3 would not be returning to ABC as part of the fall 2026 TV lineup.
Instead, the hit drama has been pushed to a 2027 premiere, an update that disappointed fans eager to see what happens next after that potentially deadly cliffhanger.
However, there’s some encouraging news to help bridge the long wait.
Matthew Lamb, who plays Elliot—Morgan’s equally gifted son—recently revealed that the series is already in production despite the extended hiatus.
“Best day ever at ‘work!’ So excited for Season 3 with our incredible writers and showrunners! Plus the nicest people ever!” he wrote on Instagram, posing alongside a poster for the show and around the lot.
That means the series should be ready to go when it returns in early 2027, possibly even in January, following the holiday break.
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High Potential joins other ABC hits like The Rookie and Will Trent, which have also been held for midseason—suggesting the network is confident fans will stick around despite the delay.
And based on the numbers, that confidence seems justified, as the Season 2 finale, which aired April 7, hit a high note, drawing an impressive 12.69 million viewers.
There’s also plenty of story left to explore. While Steve Howey may not return as a series regular, questions surrounding Nick Wagner’s fate—and the escalating Roman storyline—are more pressing than ever, especially after a hit was put out on Wagner during his investigation.
Meanwhile, changes are happening behind the scenes as well, with showrunner Todd Harthan stepping down and Nora and Lilla Zuckerman taking over.
All signs point to a season of major shifts, but ones that could ultimately and hopefully make the wait worthwhile.
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