Editor’s Note: The below interview contains spoilers for Rivals Season 2 Episode 6.Rivals Season 2 has officially hit its midway point, but if you think the first half of Season 2 was big, well then, Dominic Treadwell-Collins has news for you. Collider sat down with the showrunner to discuss all things Rivals after that major death in the midseason finale, which was a shocking change from the books. It’s already been revealed that Rachael Stirling, Rupert Evans, and Santiago Cabrera will be joining the second part of Season 2 — Cabrera and Evans will be coming in as book characters Alejandro Mendoza from Polo and David Hawkley from The Man Who Made Husbands Jealous, respectively, which follow Rivals in Jilly Cooper‘s Rutshire Chronicles series. Stirling’s Araminta Pemberton, however, comes in as a new character and seems primed to cause trouble. With so much more of the original novel’s story to wrap up, there’s a lot of ground for Rivals to cover when it returns this November.

Cooper, who died last October at the age of 88, had a big impact on the series. Treadwell-Collins reflected on how much he missed working with Cooper and wished that the author got to see the fan reaction to Season 2, “She would have been over the moon.” Giving insight into the process of working with Cooper, the showrunner emphasized the importance of Cooper’s books when it comes to the adaptation process. “As a writer, writing in Jilly World is a really lovely place to be, and it makes me feel close to her,” he commented, before adding, “I feel very privileged to be able to call Jilly Cooper a friend.”

Treadwell-Collins also teases what to expect from the return of Rivals and how Araminta’s arrival will affect Tony (David Tennant) moving forward after the tragic death of his wife and her sister, Monica Baddingham (Claire Rushbrook). Additionally, the showrunner discusses the complicated relationship between Declan (Aidan Turner) and Cameron (Nafessa Williams) and whether Declan was lying to Maud (Victoria Smurfit) about their affair in Ireland, as well as reveals the real-life inspiration behind Cameron nearly killing Tony with a trophy, the reasoning behind the changes made to Rupert (Alex Hassell) and Taggie’s (Bella Maclean) story, and the moment during the casting process when Cooper decided that Hassell and Maclean were the perfect actors for her beloved characters.

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‘Rivals’ Showrunner Dominic Treadwell-Collins Reflects on the Legacy of Jilly Cooper’s Books

“If in doubt, go back to Jilly, she’s so clever.”

COLLIDER: When you were first reading Jilly’s books, what was the biggest scene for you that you remember that stuck with you? And what is the scene from Rivals that you wanted to portray on screen the most?

DOMINIC TREADWELL-COLLINS: So, my first Jilly book I’ve ever read was Polo. I was 21 or 22, and [that] is the one that really stood with me. When the horse gets drunk on the apples and runs away at the village fête, those little details really, really stayed with me. With Rivals, it was Valerie, and Valerie’s snobbery, talking about standing at the end of one’s drive and not being able to see one’s house, which was a line originally she said in my script in Season 1, Episode 1, and it was too verbose at the time, so we took it out, and then I slipped it into Episode 1 of Season 2.

Bella Vista!

TREADWELL-COLLINS: The wonderful thing about Jilly is we all, every single writer in the writer’s room, if we ever get stuck, we keep going back to the books. One of my best friends, who got me excited about Jilly years ago, my friend Anna, she called me the other night and said, “Oh my god, Declan and Cameron in Ireland,” she said, “it’s verbatim from the book!” And we went to Sam [Hoare], the writer, and he was looking at the Ireland scenes, we said, “She’s done it.” If in doubt, go back to Jilly, she’s so clever.

“It also was really important to all of us that Cameron didn’t just have sex with men who were unavailable to her.”

You mentioned Declan and Cameron, and I’m very curious to know if you can confirm whether or not Declan is lying to Maud when he’s having that conversation with her, saying nothing happened. I don’t know if I really believe him, but is he telling the truth?

TREADWELL-COLLINS: Declan is telling the truth. We talked about this a lot with Jilly, and we talked about it a lot in the writers’ room, and some writers believe that because in the book near the end you realize that Declan and Cameron did have sex in Ireland. We had this discussion with Jilly where there was one point she went “Oh no they didn’t!” We went “No Jilly look at the book they did!” So we went back and forth about it a lot. What we decided on was a lot of our men — almost all our men — are love rats. With Declan we wanted to show that actually not all men are love rats.

It also was really important to all of us that Cameron didn’t just have sex with men who were unavailable to her. Our Cameron is very different from Cameron in the book. I think our Cameron has more teeth is tougher and is more independent and stronger. Because of what she’s going through with Rupert we as an audience know how much Rupert loves Taggie; we found it was sort of demeaning for Cameron to just suddenly drop everything and have sex with Declan. And because we play up front instead of a reveal for Maud and Tony’s affair for audiences to see that then have Declan shagging Cameron at the same time there are no stakes you’d go “Oh these people are all shagging each other there’s no morality there.”

So that was really really important to us. We talked about it a lot with Jilly but also,I want Rivals to run and run I love this idea that there’s this sexual tension between Declan and Cameron as they work together; they’re intellectual equals who really want to jump into bed and jump each other’s bones which I think is sexy to watch and play.

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‘Rivals’ Showrunner Discusses Rupert and Taggie and What Inspired Season 1’s Major Finale Twist

“It’s stupid like quite a good way for a television writer producer to die: death by BAFTA.”

I love Rupert and Taggie but I think it’s very interesting at the end of Season 1 that you have them kiss which is obviously this early consummation of their romance. But it means that some of the scenes from the books inevitably might have to get cut because the tone is just not the same so I’m sad that we didn’t get him bringing her mushrooms and that birthday scene with puppy was a little different. How do you decide which of these scenes gets cut and which of them gets changed in writing process?

TREADWELL-COLLINS: We would discuss it a lot with Jilly. What was wonderful is getting her notes on every single episode sitting chatting with her. And when we first talked about Season 1,we didn’t know if we were going to come back ,and Rupert and Taggie had to kiss at end of Season 1 ,because if we’d never come back that would have just been pointless. Also because we hoped we’d always come back we needed to give audience some satisfaction Taggie Rupert some hope.

Meanwhile,in book Tony beats Cameron to a pulp ,and we were never going to do that . I was never going to do that. So we very much early days said Cameron had fight him back. In lockdown my BAFTA was on top cupboard my husband told me not move it I moved it anyway ignoring my husband hit me head knocked me out heading hospital told if had fallen inch further I’d been killed. So I mean it’s stupid like quite good way for television writer producer die death by BAFTA.

But Jilly thought this was funniest thing Jilly Felicity Blunt I very early days said actually Cameron gets award whacks Tony back. That also set example where w e like take moments love from book subvert them keep viewers toes ,and also make sure dramatically it’s got much tension possible. There’s moment book famous moment book where Taggie waits Rupert airport sign —

I love that scene!

TREADWELL-COLLINS: All I’m saying is w e talked Jilly lot about moment how make most dramatically interesting . That’s all I’m saying!

‘Rivals’ Showrunner Teases What’s Coming From ‘Polo’ and ‘The Man Who Made Husbands Jealous’ in Part 2

“…our hope is we’re putting out our tendrils to rest of world.”

You mentioned bPolob. I love that bookb. The Man Who Made Husbands Jealousb. I was so excited see David Hawkley had been cast.I was so excited see Alejandro had been cast—b.