In the MGM Plus series From, Tabitha (Catalina Sandino Moreno) and Jim (Eion Bailey) become trapped with their family in a mysterious town where danger seems to lurk behind every corner. In From season 2, they’re facing new threats and they’re away from their children. What to Watch spoke with Sandino Moreno and Bailey about the challenges of parenting in this strange place.
At the end of the first season, Jim was working to find a radio signal after building a tower at Colony House. Tabitha went back to their home to continue digging in the basement; she was trying to see where the town’s electricity came from. When Jim finally gets a signal, a male voice tells him Tabitha shouldn’t be digging. He leaves daughter Julie (Hannah Cheramy) to watch over her brother Ethan (Simon Webster) while he goes to help her.
In the From season 2 premiere, Jim arrives to find that the hole is full of debris and he can’t see Tabitha. He gets help from Tom the bartender (Reid Price) and two of the passengers from the bus that arrived, but then the house collapses on them and they become trapped. Jim saw a chamber under the debris, though, and he tries to reassure a terrified Julie that Tabitha probably made it.
Needless to say, being a parent is rough in this town. Not only is it impossible to leave but monsters come out at night that are out for blood. It’s the last place kids should be without their parents and that’s where Jim and Tabitha find themselves in season 2 — away from their kids.
What to Watch asked about something Julie said in season 1 about how being trapped managed to bring their struggling family closer together than ever before.
“There is a silver lining and it is that we’ve come closer together through this adversity as a way to heal and connect with each other and work together as a team in order to find a way out,” Bailey agreed. “But they’re not mutually exclusive. It’s both. We can bond and appreciate that this is happening through adversity, but also still desperately want to leave this place. Because that is the goal and that’s what’s helping the bond and the healing of the family.”
What to Watch asked about the challenges of parenting in this environment, particularly what guides Tabitha and Jim’s decisions as parents when their own personal survival is on the line and how they balance their needs and the needs of their kids.
“I like that question because sometimes as a parent you just push your feelings aside to take care of the feelings of your children because that’s your priority,” Sandino Moreno said. “I find that’s a harmful way to do things because if you’re not well, you’re not going to show that to your child. You just have to deal. It’s a lot. And for these parents — Jim is in a dire situation and I just fell through the floor. The kids are by themselves and it’s making you realize that the decision you just made was the correct one. But at the end of the day, you just have to try.”
Thankfully for Tabitha and Jim, Julie and Ethan are smart and can handle more than most kids their age. “These kids are smart and they know that the town they’re in is very dangerous. And I think this season you see the parents realizing — or at least their mom realizing — that these kids can take care of themselves and they’re growing up to be very responsible adults.”
Find out what happens to Tabitha, Jim and their kids in From season 2. New episodes premiere every Sunday on MGM Plus.
