Hell on Wheels season 2

Lore & Background

The second season features ten series regulars, with Robin McLeavy and Christopher Heyerdahl promoted from recurring status. Anson Mount plays Cullen Bohannon, a former Union Pacific Railroad worker turned robber. Colm Meaney portrays Thomas Durant, a businessman investing in the First Transcontinental Railroad. Common plays Elam Ferguson, a recently freed slave who serves as chief of railroad police. Dominique McElligott plays Lily Bell, who adopts her husband's dream of completing the railroad. Christopher Heyerdahl plays Thor Gundersen, known as 'the Swede,' an undertaker and custodian tarred and feathered by the citizens of Hell on Wheels. Tom Noonan plays Reverend Nathaniel Cole, a former minister who starts drinking again. Eddie Spears plays Joseph Black Moon, a Cheyenne struggling between traditions and white culture. Ben Esler and Phil Burke play the McGinnes brothers, Sean and Mickey. Robin McLeavy plays Eva, a former 'indian whore' working in the brothel.

Reader's Guide

The second season of Hell on Wheels was met with favorable reviews from critics, though it received a 60 out of 100 aggregate score on Metacritic, indicating 'mixed or average' reception. The premiere was watched by just over 2.5 million viewers, down significantly from the first season's premiere and finale. Critics praised the visual quality and performances of Anson Mount and Common, but some found the season's pacing and character development uneven. The season's significance lies in its exploration of post-Civil War railroad expansion and the moral compromises of its characters. The production built larger sets near the Bow River in Calgary, including approximately 3,002 feet of railroad track, and filming took about 80 days. The season's legacy is as a transitional chapter that deepened character motivations while maintaining the series' signature Western aesthetic.

Did You Know?

• Production began in late-April 2012 and took about 80 days to film the ten episodes.
• Exterior filming moved from the Tsuu T'ina Nation reserve to near the Bow River in Calgary, allowing for bigger sets and 3,002 feet of railroad track.
• Virginia Madsen was cast in a four-episode story arc as Hannah Durant, wife of Thomas.
• The two-hour finale was watched by 2.18 million viewers with a 0.6 18-49 rating.

Creative Leadership and the Production Transition

Season 2 of Hell on Wheels occupies a pivotal position in the show's production history. The series was created by Joe and Tony Gayton, developed through Endemol USA under senior vice-president Jeremy Gold, and produced by Entertainment One alongside Nomadic Pictures. However, in 2012, AMC made the announcement that the Gayton brothers would no longer be involved in the day-to-day production of the series. This meant that season 2 effectively served as the final chapter under the original creators' direct hands before the helm passed to new leadership. On December 12, 2012, AMC confirmed that writer John Wirth would assume the showrunner role beginning with the third season. For the second season, this transition period likely shaped the tone and direction of the storytelling, as the writing room adjusted to new creative leadership while the show continued its broadcast on AMC in the United States and Canada. The series had premiered on November 6, 2011, so by the time season 2 aired, the show had already established its audience and narrative foundation.

Cast Turnover and the Arrival of New Faces

Season 2 marks a significant reshuffling of the ensemble cast. Several characters who anchored the first season bid farewell after this installment: Dominique McElligott's Lily Bell, a recent widow whose late husband had been a surveyor for the transcontinental railroad; Tom Noonan's Reverend Nathaniel Cole, a minister haunted by his participation in Bleeding Kansas; and Eddie Spears' Joseph Black Moon, a Cheyenne Christian convert torn between ancestral traditions and the encroaching new world. In their place, the second season introduced Christopher Heyerdahl as Thor Gundersen, Durant's ruthless head of security who goes by the nickname 'The Swede' despite being Norwegian—a nod to the historical personal union between Norway and Sweden. Robin McLeavy also arrived as Eva Toole, a woman bearing a prominent chin-tattoo from her time in Indian captivity, who initially earns her keep in the Hell on Wheels brothel while quietly supporting those in need. Both characters would go on to remain with the series through its final season, signaling a new era for the show's supporting cast.

Cullen Bohannon's Transformation from Avenger to Railroad Man

At the heart of Hell on Wheels stands Cullen Bohannon, portrayed by Anson Mount, whose journey from vengeful soldier to railroad foreman defines the series' emotional core. A former Confederate cavalry colonel, Bohannon initially joins the Union Pacific Railroad with a singular, burning purpose: to track down the Union soldiers responsible for murdering his wife Mary and young son during the Civil War. By the second season, set in the years following Lincoln's assassination in 1865, his arc is in full motion. The narrative indicates that Bohannon gradually leaves his quest for revenge behind and embraces the identity of a 'railroad man,' rising to become the foreman for the transcontinental railroad and eventually its chief engineer. This transformation is not merely professional but deeply personal—Bohannon must reconcile his Confederate past with his new role building the very infrastructure of the Union he once fought against. His relationship with Elam Ferguson, a recently freed Black slave played by Common, serves as a crucial grounding force, with Elam working as Bohannon's security and general assistant throughout the early seasons. The pairing embodies the show's broader themes of redemption and found family amid the brutal landscape of the Great Plains.

The Living World of the Hell on Wheels Encampment

The mobile encampment known as 'Hell on Wheels' is far more than a backdrop; it functions as a living, breathing microcosm of post-Civil War America. The series chronicles the Union Pacific Railroad and the extraordinary mix of people who lived, worked, and died alongside the railhead as it pushed west across the Great Plains. This population includes laborers, mercenaries, prostitutes, surveyors, and countless others drawn to the promise of the transcontinental railroad. Thomas 'Doc' Durant, played by Colm Meaney, anchors this world as the businessman and investor who will stop at nothing to build his fortune, making him both the engine and the moral complexity of the enterprise. The camp's social fabric is further woven by figures like Gregory Toole, an Irish laborer who serves as an antagonist to Elam, and Nell, the madam of the Hell on Wheels brothel, both of whom appear in the early seasons. The setting spans from 1865 through 1869, capturing the full arc of the railroad's construction. Season 2, in particular, deepens this world by introducing new power dynamics and rivalries that reflect the tensions of a society being literally built from the ground up, mile by mile, across an unforgiving landscape.

Gallery