American Gods season 2 is a powerhouse adaptation lifted from the pages of Neil Gaiman’s famed novel. War is brewing and the Old Gods, brought to America, are losing their place of prominence as New Gods (technology, media) gain more and more attention from the masses.
Air Date | Synopsis | Trailer | Episode Guide | Cast
‘American Gods’ season 2 air date
The American Gods season 2 has concluded its run on Starz. This season took us from House on the Rock to Cairo, Illinois, ending with Shadow Moon on the road to Lakeside with a new identity and family history. With Wednesday MIA and the New Gods rising to power, where will everyone fall once the battle lines are officially drawn?
Want to catch up on American Gods? You can stream the episodes by adding a Starz package to your existing Hulu or Amazon streaming subscription.
‘American Gods’ season 2 episodes
The synopsis for American Gods season 2 reads: We were forged in God’s image, but the Gods are also made in ours — and in Season Two the battle moves inexorably toward crisis point as the destinies of gods and men collide. While Mr. World plots revenge for the attack against him in Season One, Shadow throws in his lot with Wednesday’s attempt to convince the Old Gods of the case for full-out war, with Laura and Mad Sweeney in tow. A council at the House on the Rock explodes into chaos, sending deities both Old and New on quests across America that will converge on Cairo, Illinois: forcing Shadow to carve out a place as a believer in this strange new world of living gods — a dark world where change demands commitment, and faith requires terrible sacrifice.
‘American Gods’ season 2, episode 1 ‘House on the Rock’:
Airing March 10, 2019
Following the epic showdown at Easter’s party, Mr. Wednesday continues his quest to pitch the case for war to the Old Gods with Shadow, Laura and Mad Sweeney in tow. Meanwhile, Mr. World plans revenge and Technical Boy goes on the hunt for Media. First stop – the House on the Rock, where Shadow is taken “backstage.”
Read our American Gods season 2 premiere review
‘American Gods’ season 2, episode 2 ‘The Beguiling Man’
Airing March 17, 2019
Promising vengeance for the death of a beloved old god, Mr. Wednesday begins preparation for a great battle. Meanwhile Laura and Mad Sweeney chase Shadow’s diminishing light after his disappears. The Jinn and Salim set out to retrieve the Gungnir spear, and Shadow encounters an associate of Mr. World. Read our American Gods season 2, episode 2 review.
‘American Gods’ season 2, episode 3 ‘Muninn’
Airing March 24, 2019
As he is tracked by Mr. World, Shadow makes his way to Cairo, thanks to a ride from Sam Black Crow (Devery Jacobs). Mr. Wednesday slyly gains Laura’s help in forging an alliance with a powerful god. Mr. World introduces Technical Boy to New Media and assigns them a very important task. Read our American Gods season 2, episode 3 review.
‘American Gods’ season 2, episode 4 ‘The Greatest Story Ever Told’
Airing March 31, 2019
While Shadow and Wednesday take a secret meeting in St. Louis, Bilquis arrives at the funeral home in Cairo, where she engages in a debate with Mr. Nancy and Mr. Ibis. Laura rejoins Mad Sweeney, and Tech Boy pays a visit to his first worshipper. Read our American Gods season 2, episode 4 review.
‘American Gods’ season 2, episode 5 ‘The Ways of the Dead’
Airing April 7, 2019
Steeped in Cairo’s history, Shadow learns the ways of the dead with the help of Mr. Ibis and Mr. Nancy; in New Orleans, Mad Sweeney introduces Laura to old friends who share their world of voodoo healing. Mr. Wednesday embarks on a road trip with Salim and the Jinn, and they have a challenging discussion about faith. Bilquis discovers an opportunity to draw new worshippers that might give her the power to break free of Mr. World.
‘American Gods’ season 2, episode 6 ‘Donar the Great’
Airing April 14, 2019
Shadow and Mr. Wednesday seek out Dvalin to repair the Gungnir spear. But before the dwarf is able to etch the runes of war, he requires a powerful artifact in exchange. On the journey, Wednesday tells Shadow the story of Donar the Great. Meanwhile, Mr. World and New Media harness the power of her worshippers to prepare for the coming storm.
‘American Gods’ season 2, episode 7 ‘Treasure of the Sun’
Airing April 21, 2019
In Cairo, Mr. Wednesday entrusts Shadow with the Gungnir spear. Mad Sweeney, plagued by the cries of Banshees, recalls his journey through the ages as he awaits his promised battle. Once again, he warns Shadow about Wednesday. Meanwhile, Laura receives sage advice from Mama-Ji, and Bilquis finds an audience.
‘American Gods’ season 2, episode 8 ‘Moon Shadow’
Airing April 28, 2019
Shadow is tormented by recent events and Wednesday has disappeared. Those that remain witness the power of New Media as she is unleashed, and the nation is enveloped in a state of panic brought on by Mr. World.
‘American Gods’ season 2 delays lead to fears
American Gods has experienced a fair amount of turnover behind the scenes. While the details surrounding the removals, exits, and delays of the series are mostly hearsay, a few notable disputes have led to the speculation that the series is in a great deal of trouble.
Notably, the exit of Bryan Fuller and Michael Green (who developed the show with Neil Gaiman) shook the production at the close of season 1. Their separation from the show cited budget restrictions (they wanted more money to keep expanding the visual elements of the show) and ultimately led to the subsequent departures of Gillian Anderson (Media) and Kristin Chenoweth (Easter).
As season 2 took a while to get off the ground, another report surfaced in September 2018 that Jesse Alexander, the new showrunner, was no longer active on the series.
At New York Comic Con, Neil Gaiman and the cast hoped to clarify some of the reports surrounding the delays of season 2 saying, “If you actually wind [the cited article] down to actual facts, what happened was we had a script for the finale that didn’t work. And rather than rush it through…we get the script right and then we shoot it.”
Ahead of the second episode of the season, American Gods season 3 was greenlit by Starz. The series will continue to Lakeside, a pivotal location in the book, easing the fear of fans who thought they might not make it. The series will also gain a new showrunner, the third since the show began, with Charles “Chic” Eglee taking the reins.
In a statement, Neil Gaiman said that the two have already begun discussions around the third season and that he is “delighted that he gets to carry the American Gods torch on to glory.”
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Fans of the book will be treated to a uniquely crafted visualization of the passages and characters they’ve known from their reading experience. Meanwhile, viewers coming into the series without knowledge of the source material will uncover the mysteries of the series alongside the series lead, Shadow Moon.
While certain elements of Gaiman’s original story are updated to account for the advances of the last two decades, the TV series manages to remain timeless.
This resource will be updated regularly as American Gods season 2 continues airing.
American Gods season 2 cast
Ricky Whittle — Shadow Moon
Ian McShane — Mr. Wednesday
Emily Browning — Laura Moon
Pablo Schreiber — Mad Sweeney
Crispin Glover — Mr. World
Orlando Jones — Mr. Nancy
Yetide Badaki — Bilquis
Bruce Langley — Technical Boy
Mousa Kraish — The Jinn
Omid Abtahi — Salim
Demore Barnes — Mr. Ibis
Peter Stormare — Czernobog
Cloris Leachman — Zorya Vechernyaya
Kahyun Kim — New Media
Devery Jacobs — Sam Black Crow
Sakina Jaffrey — Mama-Ji
Dean Winters — Mr. Town
‘American Gods’ season 2 trailer
Shadow Moon has a choice to make in American Gods season 2. Questions are answered, new threats are revealed, and while Shadow appears to be walking on more level ground with the Gods, what will he decide to do now that he is among them? As Mad Sweeney cautions, there is always a cost to working with Wednesday.
House on the Rock, will take us backstage, more “Coming to America” stories will expand the mythos of our Old God regime, Mad Sweeney and Laura Moon will continue to expand their story arcs, all while the New Gods continue their rise to power. Expect more tales spun by Orlando Jones’ Mr. Nancy, and some complications to arise as Yetide Badaki’s Bilquis tackles her confliction between the glory of the old days of worship and the gifts and ease of the new world order.
We don’t expect anything less than a chilling tale when American Gods season 2 returns.
Watch another preview here:
‘American Gods’ best couples
The show has introduced us to a bunch of great characters, and naturally some of them have gotten together. Below are our favorite couples in the series.
Laura Moon and Mad Sweeney — The unlikely duo of Mad Sweeney, the six-foot leprechaun played by Pablo Schreiber and Laura Moon, also known as Dead Wife, played by Emily Browning, have taken off as fan favorites. Their stories have grown individually over the course of season 1, but they have also, notably, grown together. What started out for Mad Sweeney as a hunt for the return of an object stolen, grew into a journey to preserve someone who came along with the deal. Through the loss of luck and purpose, both have found a companion to take on the unknown.
Salim and the Jinn — American Gods did not shy away from recreating one of the most intimate scenes in the novel. The first meeting of Salim and the Jinn is romantic, painful, and beautiful. The journey for Salim to reconnect with the Jinn is where we pick up in season 2. As their want and need for one another grows, so does our desire to follow their story.
