Season 2 of St. Denis Medical threw fans for a loop by hitting pause on Matt and Serena‘s growing romance.
During the Monday, November 3, premiere, a brief time jump revealed that Matt (Mekki Leeper) and Serena (Kahyun Kim) were working in different parts of the hospital. Serena requested the change to help Matt get over his feelings for her — until she realized Matt asked for the same thing.
Matt then told Serena he was able to move on from her, which did not leave her thrilled. The twist hinted that now Serena was more aware of her feelings for Matt than the other way around — a shift from their season 1 dynamic.
“Like a real relationship, you got to get to know each other,” Leeper, 31, exclusively told Us Weekly. “There’s some stop and start there.”
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Leeper teased Matt’s state of mind. “He doesn’t want to be too desperate and wants to kind of play it cool. Sometimes that means you have to step back for a season,” he explained. “I like that they’re not a classic sitcom-like romance.”
He continued: “They’re both really weird in their own right. If they weren’t dating, it would be just two interesting characters. I think it’s cool that we get to be weirdos together.”
Kim, 36, meanwhile, hinted that there would be more surprises as the season plays out.
“A lot of things happen in season 2,” she added. “A lot of ups and downs so it definitely continues to grow and mold into something. It’s very exciting.”
While speaking to Us, Wendi McLendon-Covey recalled being shocked at the outcome. “Every table read we were like, ‘Well, what happens now?” she shared. “We all want it to go a certain way but it is sure to take some twists and turns that none of us ever expected.”
St. Denis Medical follows overworked doctors and nurses trying their best to care for patients at an underfunded Oregon hospital. In addition to Leeper, Kim and McLendon-Covey, the mockumentary stars David Alan Grier, Allison Tolman, Josh Lawson and Kaliko Kauahi.
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When the series premiered on NBC in 2024, viewers couldn’t help but notice that Matt and Serena’s romance could make them the next fan-favorite sitcom couple. Creator Eric Ledgin didn’t rule out a potential romance between Matt and Serena.
“There’s definitely at least a one-sided will-they-or-won’t-they happening,” he previously teased to Us. “So I can tell you it’ll definitely be a slow burn of something that we will track over time.”
Ahead of season 2, Tolman, 43, defended the decision not to rush into the onscreen romance.
“We’ve been taught — especially by relationships in the media — that with shipping these are the handfuls of things that can go wrong. But in relationships, sometimes someone is gone for a month for work and when they come back the vibes are weird,” she told Us. “It’s just a little weird. Relationships are work all the time. Every single step along the way — even when they’re good. There’s lots of places where we could take a romance.”
St. Denis Medical airs on NBC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET before streaming the next day on Peacock.
