Average Joe Season 2 Review: Malcolm Barrett & Cynthia Kaye McWilliams Talk Leon and Cathy
Reel Perspectives
September 21, 2026
Paramount+’s Average Joe wrapped its second season with the same unpredictable combination of humor, grit, danger, and heart that made the series so entertaining, while raising the stakes for Leon Montgomery and Cathy Montgomery. Played by Malcolm Barrett and Cynthia Kaye McWilliams, the married couple found themselves navigating increasing danger where love, loyalty, survival, and ambition constantly had them reaching their limit.
Season 1 introduced Leon as a man determined to rebuild his life and regain the success he once had. He wanted his store, stability, and a sense that he was finally moving forward. By Season 2, Leon had evolved. He was no longer simply trying to get his life back on track. He had learned to embrace the chaos surrounding him and step up to meet it.
Barrett brought that evolution to life by giving Leon a stronger sense of confidence and determination. During our conversation with the actor, he described Leon as someone who had become much more comfortable operating in the chaos rather than running from it. That shift became an important part of his journey throughout the season as Leon was repeatedly forced to make difficult choices and protect the people he loved.
Cathy's evolution was just as important, and McWilliams made sure there was much more to her than the fierce, take charge woman viewers saw on the surface. Cathy had spent much of her life being underestimated, and Season 2 finally gave her the opportunity to push back against that perception.
Reel Perspectives caught up with Malcolm Barrett and Cynthia Kaye McWilliams to talk about Season 2, the evolution of Leon and Cathy, their complicated marriage, and how the series continued to balance its humor with increasingly dangerous stakes. The two stars opened up about what made their characters' journeys so unpredictable and why Leon and Cathy remained at the heart of the season.
One of the season's defining ideas was Cathy's realization that she didn't need everyone to understand her power. She desperately wanted Leon, the man she loved, to recognize what she was capable of so they could build something together. At the same time, she was becoming increasingly determined to pursue what she wanted whether other people understood her or not.
That tension gave the Montgomery marriage much of its emotional weight.
Leon and Cathy loved each other, but their relationship was anything but ordinary. Their disagreements weren't simply about finances, communication, or everyday marital problems. Their world involved warlords, drug dealers, hitmen, police, and situations where one wrong decision could have deadly consequences.
As Barrett explained during our interview, the couple's personal conflicts became significantly more complicated because the circumstances surrounding them were literally life threatening. That made their arguments, disagreements, and moments of reconciliation feel bigger while still keeping the emotional core of their relationship intact.
McWilliams also brought a vulnerability to Cathy that prevented her toughness from becoming one dimensional. Beneath the confidence was a woman who wanted to be seen, respected, and taken seriously — particularly by her husband. Her journey became one of the season's most satisfying character developments because Cathy increasingly stopped waiting for someone else to validate her.
The chemistry between Barrett and McWilliams remained one of the show's biggest strengths. They were able to move seamlessly between comedy, tension, romance, and drama, giving Leon and Cathy a relationship that felt complicated but genuine. Even when the two characters were at odds, there was always an underlying sense that their love for one another remained the thing holding them together.
The completed season also delivered plenty of unexpected turns, dangerous revelations, and moments that pushed the Montgomerys further into a world they never expected. But despite the escalating criminal chaos, Average Joe never completely lost its sense of humor or its humanity. There were genuine moments of laugh out loud, hilarious comedy that easiy made this season sood out.
That's ultimately what made Season 2 work. Beneath the violence, surprises, and outrageous situations was a story about two people discovering who they were individually while figuring out whether their marriage could survive everything being thrown at them.
Average Joe closed out Season 2 by proving that its title remained a little misleading. Leon and Cathy were certainly relatable at their core, but there was nothing average about the trouble they found themselves in. The season delivered laughs, danger, unexpected surprises, and plenty of heart while giving its central couple room to grow — both individually and together.
Average Joe is streaming now on Paramount+
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