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Royal Pains: Winter Season Scoop!

USA will air the second half of Royal Pains' Season 2 beginning January 20, so fans don't have to wait until summer to hit the Hamptons again with HankMed. TV Guide Magazine went in search of scoop at The Paley Center for Media's screening and panel discussion, held November 8 in Los Angeles.The first January episode takes place at a three-day charity golf tournament benefiting the hospital. Jill is on a team with a boozy couple (the woman is played by Amy Sedaris) and a once-promising pro hindered by a degenerative muscular disorder in his hand (Tom Cavanagh). While Hank tries to fix him, he practices his game on Jill. "In the first episode back, one of our own actually gets sick and Hank has to work his diagnostic magic," Reshma Shetty (Divya) teases. The medication leads to a few loopy hospital bed confessions and makes Hank rethink a past love-life decision...

Carrie Bell

USA will air the second half of Royal Pains' Season 2 beginning January 20, so fans don't have to wait until summer to hit the Hamptons again with HankMed. TV Guide Magazine went in search of scoop at The Paley Center for Media's screening and panel discussion, held November 8 in Los Angeles.
The first January episode takes place at a three-day charity golf tournament benefiting the hospital. Jill is on a team with a boozy couple (the woman is played by Amy Sedaris) and a once-promising pro hindered by a degenerative muscular disorder in his hand (Tom Cavanagh). While Hank tries to fix him, he practices his game on Jill. "In the first episode back, one of our own actually gets sick and Hank has to work his diagnostic magic," Reshma Shetty (Divya) teases. The medication leads to a few loopy hospital bed confessions and makes Hank rethink a past love-life decision.
Jill Flint (Jill) promises plenty of "back and forth" between Jill and Hank and the possibility of them getting back together is fairly high. "There will always be a spark between the two of them, and there is some movement towards them getting back together. But there are also some moves away from that outcome. Other men [though likely not her ex-husband] may come into her life." There's also the question of Emily (Anastasia Griffith), a competitive doctor who caught Hank's eye. Mark Feuerstein says, "The relationship goes to a very interesting place. You will see Emily again, but the question is [for] how long."
Speaking of will they or won't they, Shetty remained mum when asked if Divya will be married by the end of the season. She did reveal that Adam, the kidney donor she made out with, returns to stir the pot. "That storyline is far from finished. He's into her and he doesn't give up so easily even when she tries to push him away." Shetty says she's enjoyed moving away from the "all-business Divya" and diving into the character's personal life. "I like getting into her interactions with her family and the bizarre first-generation ethnic thing, which I understand because I live it."
The possibility that she'll end up in Evan's arms is also still on the table, but producers are at a stalemate. "One of us likes Divya and Evan as a couple and one of us doesn't, so we will see where it ends up," says executive producer Michael Rauch. "We agree that they have a terrific chemistry, and we want to use that to our advantage and get the most out of it, but we disagree currently on what that means." Paulo Costanzo (Evan) is not in favor of the pairing. "I hope it never happens. I liken it to [The X-Files'] Mulder and Scully. There was always a sexual ambiguity, and the moment they really got together, I didn't even want to watch. The tension made it compelling, and I think we capture a similar tension with Divya and Evan. So if it ever were to go there, I would want it to happen off camera in the series finale."
Pop Eddie Lawson will live to scheme another day. "Henry Winkler's a tough guy. He's gonna bounce back," executive producer Andrew Lenchewski says about Eddie. "He's shacking up with New Parts Neuberg, which is quite comical, and because of his near-death experience he realizes how important his sons are to him, but he has a lot of making up to do and had to win back their trust." Feuerstein adds that coming close to losing his father convinces Hank that maybe he should give his dad a second chance. "The writers did a beautiful job of bringing the arc of our relationship to some sort of resolution by the season finale. Hank definitely realized some things when he almost watched his dad die. He's ready to give him a second chance. When his life gets more complicated, Evan and Hank are drawn into the situation and his presence will continue to cause problems for them."
Boris (Campbell Scott) is still a badass not to be messed with, and for now Hank is staying mum on his girlfriend Marissa's pregnancy. But, warns Lenchewski, "Boris is a determined guy who knows how to get the information he needs. You do not want to find yourself on the wrong end of a secret with Boris, especially not this secret. It's the kind of thing that even when the secret is exposed, there is still a lot of tension to be had from it. We feel heightened tension because the answer raises so many questions." Feuerstein divulges that Boris' life "gets incredibly complicated, both because of his health and his personal life and it's directly connected to Hank's life out in the Hamptons. It gets very tricky for them."
Guest stars to look forward to in the six winter episodes include Julianne Nicholson (Law & Order), Jim Gaffigan, Bob Gunton (reprising his role as Paige's dad, Gen. William Collins), and Gilles Marini. The Dancing With the Stars alum might figure into an episode where Divya does the tango. "I was petrified when I saw that in the script. I'm not a dancer," says Shetty. "I only got four lessons. Don't judge me." The season finale will also include the show's first-ever musical cameo by John Legend.
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