With the first season of ‘Under the Dome‘ coming to a close, we’ve seen both questions answered and more mysteries pop up. Those behind the creation of the dome which has covered Chester’s Mill are revealed, though their purpose only holds more questions for the viewers.

I’d love to say who those were but if you’ve missed the episode and haven’t read the book yet I’m not going to give away that big of a spoiler. Of course there’s still plenty more to talk about, such as what executive producer Brian K. Vaughan felt about things. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Vaughan, talks about the show’s season finale and what to expect in Season 2.  There are a few spoilers in his answers (specifically the last one) though for the most part I skipped over the questions that would throw anyone into a fit of rage if they aren’t quite caught up yet.

First up was how he felt on how the first season has ended:

“Sure. For me, my concern has always been, “Is one audience member in particular happy?” — and that’s Stephen King. He’s been thrilled. We’re so excited to have him on board, especially for the beginning of next season. The show is going to take some very unexpected new directions next season but I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished so far.”

Vaughn doesn’t say if the changes are in line with the big reveal at the season finale or how it changes from where the novel was when it ended. Still would he have have done things differently at all building up to this point?

“Sure. I think there are always things — the speed that you’d put together a new show with and the fact that we had 13 episodes just about completed in their entirety before one had even aired. Looking back, sure, there are always things you’d do differently. For the most part, we concentrate on the parts of the show that we really liked and challenge ourselves to do something new next season.”

So how will things be in Season 2? Vaughn states that that when it comes to breaking new ground, it’s time for the creativity to really kick it up a notch:

“This first season is based on the framework of the novel. Next season is what always excited King most about the possibility of doing this as an ongoing series. If you’ve read King’s novel, it takes place over the course of a couple of weeks. King’s dream was always, “How will things change when we go beyond that, when we talk about people who aren’t trapped together for days or weeks on end but potentially years on end?” That’s the biggest change that will happen next season: We’re no longer dealing with the immediate aftermath of the dome. This season the challenge was to establish the tone of the town, and you’re dealing so much with the town coming to terms with if they’re really trapped and if there’s a chance they’re going to get out. Next season is exciting for us because it’s a season where everybody knows they’re not getting out and they’re clearly trapped — and this is the new normal. We’ll get to go to some places that the book never got to go to.”

So will Season 2 immediately take place where the last season ended?

“I don’t want to spoil too much because King will saw off my head if I ruin anything, but there will definitely be answers to the cliffhanger that we left. We will give you some immediate answers to that as well. But there is a possibility that there’s a bit of a time jump as well.”

Vaughn’s answers are great and all but what about the two central questions of “Who is behind the dome?” and “Why Chester’s Mill?” which both apparently weren’t to be answered until the series itself came to an end. Is that still the case?

“The answers that we left with are, “Who is the monarch?” We now know conclusively that it’s Julia, so what does that mean? The second big answer is we’ve at least met some facet of who is behind the dome, and we’ve got an answer that’s very different than the book. Otherworldly beings behind the dome in the book were there for very malicious reasons; they’d put this dome down to toy with the people of Chester’s Mill. We now know that the people behind our dome have a very different reason: Their dome is there to keep us safe. That will be a major focus of next season, and we know Julia has the power to bring the dome down. Similarly, Big Jim might have the power to bring down the dome as well but he wants it to remain for very different reasons. Those are the two big answers we’re left with, and we will see what big answers come next season.”

You can read the full interview over at The Hollywood Reporter though I have to warn you it has quite a few HUGE season 1 finale spoilers.

So with the changes to the show, are you still into it? Are you looking forward to the second season and hoping they are able to pull off some magic that will impress even Stephen King himself? Let us know your thoughts below!