The Jericho Finale You Didn't See: An Inside Look

Have Jericho fans seen the last of their show, now that CBS has aired the "alternate" ending/series-ender? Executive producer Carol Barbee, who is currently shopping the drama around to other outlets, shares a peek at the original season finale.
TVGuide.com: Will viewers have any burning questions coming out of the alternate ending/series finale?
Carol Barbee: Let me see.... I can tell you that in the original ending, Hawkins has to sacrifice himself to let Jake get away with the bomb and get it to Texas so it can be tested and prove that they were telling the truth. Texas would then swing their support to Columbus and defeat Cheyenne.
TVGuide.com: Does Hawkins mortally sacrifice himself, or just let himself get captured?
Barbee: Well, he gets captured but he's also shot.... He's pretty messed up, and Jake feels like he's leaving him for dead. So we show you where he's taken and you see that the mission for the next season is, "We have to go rescue Hawkins and we have to stop these [bad] guys." When they see the alternate ending, it certainly completes the story from this season and tells you everything you need to know to have understood Season 2. It just doesn't point to that next mission. You meet John Smith, the guy who's been pulling the strings. It's [played by] Xander Berkeley ( 24). You've heard him on phone calls, and Hawkins is surprised by who he is and where he is. So you know who John Smith is, you know who planned the attacks, you know why, you know how....
TVGuide.com: Now it's just a matter of making things right in the United States?
Barbee: Right. We would have moved on to the next level of a civil war between the Cheyenne government and the Columbus government. But if your readers do have any more burning questions, let me know!
TVGuide.com: If Jericho does find a new home on another channel, will Season 3 work off the alternate ending or the original cliff-hanger edit?
Barbee: What we would do is take the information that is in the original ending, and that would be the opener for the next season. When we leave them at the end of the original ending, we've got Hawkins back and he's OK, but we still need to go fight the larger fight. I've always said that the alternate ending doesn't wrap up the series. It just lets you know that everyone is OK and it closes out this seven-episode arc. But we could definitely keep it going!
You heard the lady - if you have any burning questions coming out of last night's series finale, post them here.
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