The Night Agent season 3 is already confirmed, and it really needs to clarify if poor Dr Cole survived or not. The ending of The Night Agent season 2 already set up the conflict for the next season, where Peter (Gabriel Basso) will be squaring off against the White House itself. By the end of the season, Peter was in trouble for stealing some sensitive data for “intelligence broker” Monroe (Louis Herthum), who used that information to swing the election in his favor. Peter did this to save Rose (Luciane Buchanan) and stop the threat poised by the K.X. gas.

K.X. was the big threat of The Night Agent season 2, with this lethal chemical agent having been created by Dr. Cole (Jay Karnes) as part of a top secret weapons program. He and Rose were later kidnapped by the villains, with Cole forced to produce canisters of K.X. or his family would be executed. Rose and the good doctor eventually outsmart their captors with knockout gas, but after Cole is viciously beaten by one of Markus’ (Michael Malarkey) henchmen, his fate is left ambiguous.

The Night Agent Season 3 Needs To Confirm If Dr. Cole Survived In Season 2

Peter seems to forget about Cole

The final shot of Cole after he was beaten is Peter checking his pulse quickly and then walking away. After the immediate threat has been contained, Rose, Peter and their Night Action boss Catherine (Amanda Warren) debrief – but no mention is made of Cole’s fate. Strangely, neither Catherine nor Peter mention the doctor’s condition, and it’s downright bizarre that Rose doesn’t ask either. She and Cole were captives together and collaborated to escape with his family, so she would have some emotional investment in his condition.

Instead, The Night Agent moves on to the next story. Perhaps Dr. Cole’s fate was originally addressed but that dialogue got trimmed out for time, but the show at the very least confirms his family survived. It turns out that Cole actually did die, as showrunner Shawn Ryan later confirmed to TVLine.

The professor was beaten pretty savagely by one of the bad guys, and killed — but his death allowed his wife and Rose to escape. It was a noble sacrifice.

Despite Ryan’s comments, the fact Cole’s death wasn’t confirmed onscreen leaves some wiggle room. There’s nothing to say Ryan or the other writers on The Night Agent couldn’t bring the professor back since many viewers aren’t sure if he survived or not. It would be good either way for the third season to address Cole’s status because his fate is somewhat in limbo.

How Dr. Cole Ended Up Saving Night Action From Another Disaster

Cole was the lowkey MVP of season 2

The series makes it clear Cole is no hero when he’s introduced; he’s a family man and nerd placed in a horrible situation. He knows how dangerous the K.X. is but is forced to produce it to keep his family safe. Still, Cole manages to save Rose and his family, and the lessons he teaches Rose about K.X. end up saving the day when she manages to seal the gas in the vents of a hotel. Even to the end, Cole’s thoughts were to save others, and he faced Markus’ goon just to buy his family time to escape.

The lack of clarity regarding Cole’s fate in The Night Agent is frustrating…

If it wasn’t for Cole, Night Action would have been in serious trouble moving into the finale. Of course, it could be argued there wouldn’t have been any danger had he refused to make more K.X. in the first place, which is why he and Rose felt such a responsibility to stop it being deployed. The lack of clarity regarding Cole’s fate in The Night Agent was frustrating for this reason, as audiences wanted to see him escape with his family. Instead, the series left a strange question mark surrounding his status.