Tomorrow (November 2) Invincible Season 2 premieres on Prime Video. And we’ve already brought you up to speed on Invincible (Steven Yeun) himself, as well as Atom Eve (Gillian Jacobs). So let’s turn it over to an intriguing supporting character: Cecil Stedman (Walton Goggins).
Stedman is a key character in the adult animated series and in the comic books by Robert Kirkman, Cory Walker, and Ryan Ottley. He’s also a mysterious one, with an agenda of his own. With that in mind, let’s break down what you need to know about Cecil from Season 1, a little bit of what to expect from him in Season 2, and — spoilers on — what you might want to know about his final fate in the comics. You might also not want to know that, so stop scrolling at a certain point.
We’ll also fill you in about Walton Goggins, the actor who plays Cecil Stedman in the Invincible cast. That’s below the spoiler stuff, though. FYI.
Who Is Cecil Stedman On Invincible?
Cecil is the Director of the Global Defense Agency, a (obviously) worldwide organization that helps maintain order, as well as monitor the Earth’s superhuman population. He’s also in charge of the Guardians of the Globe, this universe’s premiere superteam.
However, Cecil is not superpowered; he’s human, and American. He also has long hair hanging off his otherwise bald head and a heavily scarred visage. Suffice it to say, he’s an interesting-looking guy with a mysterious past. He also is the sort of guy who has plans upon plans, leading to some serious trust issues from everyone around him. But given he’s a regular guy living in a world with people who can punch your head off before you can get a word out, maybe that paranoia is warranted.
Cecil spent most of Season 1 trying to repair the Guardians of the Globe after they were killed by Omni-Man (J.K. Simmons), Invincible’s father. However, Cecil didn’t know Omni-Man was a perpetrator of the crime, though he remained suspicious of the otherwise unaffiliated superhuman.
Despite all this, Cecil worked with both Omni-Man and Invincible throughout the season, right up until it was revealed just what Omni-Man had done.
What Happened To Cecil Stedman At The End Of Invincible Season 1?
Oops, turns out Cecil’s paranoia was warranted. Turns out Omni-Man is part of a race of conquering aliens called Viltrumites, and he wanted his son to join him in taking over the world. Invincible balked at this “suggestion” leading to Omni-Man taking him on a world tour, headfirst, showing him just how fragile humanity is by running Invincible through several cities, killing thousands in the process.
While all of this was going on, Cecil not only was broadcasting the footage to the world — and Debbie (Sandra Oh), Omni-Man’s wife, who he called a “pet” — but working with the Guardians and Atom Eve to try and mitigate the fallout. Ultimately, Omni-Man left Earth, and Cecil was able to recover Invincible, helping him get back to full health.
Cecil also provides a cover story for Debbie and Invincible and makes sure they’re taken care of financially in Omni-Man’s absence. He also tries to recruit Invincible, but like his father, he declines.
When we last see Cecil in Season 1, we discover he hasn’t stopped creating deterrents for rogue superhumans, and in particular he’s invested in a pretty horrific one… Earlier in the season, Invincible fought a cyborg zombie that nearly brought him to a standstill. Seems Cecil recruited the evil scientist who created them, and is having him build an army of these Reanimen, in case Omni-Man returns… Or perhaps to take down Invincible.
What’s Next For Cecil Stedman In Invincible Season 2?
Now that the Guardians of the Globe are back at full force, Cecil will be sending them out on more missions. You can find out a little bit about the individual members in our spoiler-free Invincible Season 2 review, but we’ll add that Cecil is going to push them hard, and perhaps add a few members to the team.
One member he won’t be recruiting, at least initially? Invincible. As seen in a clip released from the Season 2 premiere, Cecil doesn’t think Invincible is ready to go out in the field after clashing with his father in the Season 1 finale. It’s a classic mix of Cecil actually thinking about other people while serving his own agenda. That said? It’s only a matter of time before some of his darker secrets come out…
How Does Cecil Stedman Die In The Comics? Cecil Stedman’s Death, Explained:
Okay, remember we said the whole spoiler warning thing? That’s for this. In Season 2, we’re going to meet a new antagonist named Angstrom Levy, played by Sterling K. Brown. Levy can create portals to alternate dimensions, something that presumably will play in a big way as the season continues. And in the comics, alternate dimensions are a huge deal for a very, very long time. So long that Invincible spends a chunk of time away in another dimension later in the series. And (seriously, spoilers) while he is away, we find out that one of the major characters in the book, Robot, is evil and trying to take over the world. Yikes!
When Invincible reveals this info to Cecil, he initially balks, but ultimately believes him when… Robot starts to try and take over the world. Robot incapacitates Invincible, and slits Cecil’s throat, killing him, and blames it on Invincible. Double yikes!
That said, while Kirkman has noted they want to keep surprising fans with the series, these events are waaaaay off in the story. Cecil dies in Invincible #111, and issues-wise we’re only at about issue #14 when Invincible Season 2 picks up. While they might switch around or speed up events, at this pace, Cecil won’t be killed off until about Season 8. You’ve got plenty more time with your fave paranoid power-player.
Who Plays Cecil Stedman On Invincible? What To Know About Walton Goggins:
Even if you don’t know the name Walton Goggins, you definitely have seen the actor. He’s probably best known for playing Boyd Crowder on FX’s Justified, or more recently Baby Billy Freeman on HBO’s The Righteous Gemstones.
But the prolific actor has appeared, usually to seriously mess things up for the main characters, on shows like The Shield, Sons of Anarchy, Vice Principals, and many more. Movies-wise, Goggins has a resume a mile long. He’s appeared in Django Unchained, Lincoln, The Hateful Eight, and was weirdly wasted in Ant-Man and the Wasp. Bring back Sonny Burch, Marvel!
Coming up, he’s got a huge project starring in Prime Video’s adaptation of the Fallout video game series, which premieres next year. On Instagram, you can join his 300k+ followers in watching his weird gin commercials, and swimming videos. And unlike his cartoon counterpart, Goggins has an incredible head of hair.
When Does Invincible Season 2 Premiere On Prime Video?
Invincible Season 2 officially premieres on Prime Video on Thursday, November 2 at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT. Though Season 2 will be eight episodes long, only one episode will premiere on Thursday, followed by the next three Thursdays. Then there will be a break, and the second half of Invincible Season 2 will premiere sometime in 2024.
Here’s the full list of episodes in Invincible Season 2:
- Thursday, November 2, 2023: Invincible, Season 2, Episode 1 – “A Lesson For Your Next Life”
- Thursday, November 9, 2023: Invincible, Season 2, Episode 2 – “In About Six Hours, I Lose My Virginity to A Fish”
- Thursday, November 16, 2023: Invincible, Season 2, Episode 3 – “This Missive, This Machination!”
- Thursday, November 23, 2023: Invincible, Season 2, Episode 4 – “It’s Been A While”
- 2024, TBA: Invincible, Season 2, Episode 5 – “TBA”
- 2024, TBA: Invincible, Season 2, Episode 6 – “TBA”
- 2024, TBA: Invincible, Season 2, Episode 7 – “TBA”
- 2024, TBA: Invincible, Season 2, Episode 8 – “TBA” *Season Finale*
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