Off Campus losing a main character came as a surprise after how the cast teased season 2.
Before it was confirmed that Josh Heuston wasn’t returning as Justin, the actor, 29, spoke exclusively to Us Weekly about a possible return, saying, “That’s above my pay grade but I just hope Justin finds love and continues to be happy while writing music.”
Heuston had hope that Justin would do “all right” for himself.
“Justin is following his heart. He’s a little lover boy at heart,” he noted. “I think things went the way that they went but I think he’ll just continue to do that. He’ll probably go write some nice music about how heartbroken he is and then come back and try to find his love.”
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At the time, Heuston saw Justin yearning “over someone else” after initially forming a connection with Hannah (Ella Bright). The fictional couple didn’t work out, however, due to Hannah’s romance with Garrett (Belmont Cameli).
“I just tried to give Justin as much as possible. A lot of the time if you fell into a stereotype of another cool guy that does music on campus, you wouldn’t have that love or affinity for him,” he told Us. “My main thing was just trying to make him as good as possible.”
Creator Louisa Levy confirmed earlier this year that Justin wouldn’t appear in season 2, telling TV Guide, “Not next season, but I love Josh and I would not write him off if I can find a way to bring Justin back at some point.”
She continued: “We never got a chance to meet Stella, who is the person he ends up with in the book. So maybe we’ll find a way to fold him into a future season.”
Levy noted that it wasn’t always the plan for Justin to be absent. “We don’t have him [available] next season, but never say never,” she added.
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Based on the Off-Campus book series by Elle Kennedy, the show, which premiered Wednesday, follows an elite ice hockey team — and the women in their lives — as they “grapple with love, heartbreak, and self-discovery — forging deep friendships and enduring bonds while navigating the complexities that come with transitioning into adulthood,” read the official synopsis.
Season 1 is centered around the “sexy and fun ‘opposites attract’ romance between quiet songwriter, Hannah, and Briar University’s all-star hockey athlete, Garrett.” (The show introduces characters played by Mika Abdalla, Antonio Cipriano, Jalen Thomas Brooks and Stephen Kalyn as well.)
Bright, 19, and Cameli, 28, have since confirmed to Us that they would return for future seasons.
“I totally understand your concern,” Cameli exclusively told Us about each season of the Prime Video show being focused on a different fictional couple. “We will be along for the ride the whole time.”
Bright confirmed the plan is for them to be “sticking” around before Cameli added, “We’re excited to see what season 2 holds for [us].”
Off Campus is streaming on Prime Video.
