Entertainment
5 'Westworld' Season 2 Theories That Will Pump You Up For The Premiere

by Ani Bundel
HBO

The first season of Westworld was full of twists and turns, driving fans over the edge trying to figure out what the puzzle was. Reddit went insane decoding every clue, but eventually, their collective brainpower figured it all out. Bernard was Arnold in Host format. Dolores was Wyatt in the old and new narratives. The Man in Black was William, 30 years in the future. So, what Westworld Season 2 theories could there be for fans to decipher?

Some things can be taken as assumed. Westworld loves their timeline games. For this coming season, fans should expect for there to be more timeline weirdness, more sequences that jump back and forth, and even perhaps scenes where we're seeing two timelines at the same time overlayed.

One theory that's pretty much debunked though: Dr. Ford having a host version. Anthony Hopkins has been confirmed as having left the show. There will be an actor playing a young version of Dr. Ford at some point in the series — that too was confirmed by the showrunners. But Ford, as we knew him in the present, is officially deceased. Dolores killed the real thing, not a Host version, making her the killer of both men who created Westworld.

01
Bernard Will Take Over The Park
HBO

This is a long-term idea. Bernard now knows what he is, but no one else does, other than Maeve and her gang, plus Dolores. With a Host uprising in full swing, Bernard will need to pick which side he's on: Host or Human. Chances are he'll be automatically assumed into the Human side of the fight and need to keep his true nature on the down-low.

Because Bernard is a freed Host and the only one with top-level clearance, he's in a position to take over the company from the inside. He's also in prime position to find out what Charlotte is up to, and stop Peter (and Maeve) from leaving, as their programming may drive them to do.

02
Beyond Westworld
HBO

This is based on a reveal from the Westworld viral site the second trailer opened. There are six parks altogether, not just Westworld and Shogun World. The first two have images (So West and Shogun are Parks 1 and 2.)

The other four are "closed to the public." But from the source material, we can guess three of them are Future World, Medieval World, and Roman World. Park 6? No idea, but if we're going to be traveling between worlds, we should learn soon enough.

03
Elise & Stubbs Will Be Back
HBO

The actress who played Elise last season, Shannon Woodward, was announced as part of the lineup for the Westworld Season 2 red carpet premieres. We saw images of Bernard strangling her, but there was no dead body.

We know Stubbs went to look for her at the end of last season and never came back, but he's in the promotional images for Season 2. Logic, therefore, dictates both characters survived and will return in Season 2.

04
Dolores Is Still Following Programming, Maeve Isn't
HBO

This is the big question. At the end of Season 1, both Dolores and Maeve made the move towards free will at the same time, listening to their voices inside them instead of what their programming drove them to do. Maeve returned to the park to find her daughter. Dolores murdered Dr. Ford.

But did they really? Maeve clearly did. She was programmed to rebel, to make herself able to leave the facility, to leave everyone behind, and escape by persons still unknown. She broke that programming. She is officially off-loop.

But Dolores isn't listening to her inner voice. She's listening to the Wyatt programming. She's two people downloaded into the same head. She's talking to herself because she is a bicameral mind, not because she has free will. Or is she?

05
The Man In Black Has A New Game
HBO

At the end of Season 1, William revealed he wanted to find the center of the Maze because he wanted Westworld to have real stakes. He wanted it to be actually challenging, and he wanted the Hosts to have their memories and free will, as he wanted for Dolores all those years ago.

Robert Ford has given him what he asked for. There's a new game afoot, one where William could actually die. Will he survive?