Steve Howey’s Future on 'High Potential' Looks Uncertain — Here’s Why

The Season 2 ending of the ABC series High Potential delivered news viewers weren’t quite ready for. Steve Howey’s character, Nick Wagner, might be a goner, and possibly off the show for good (or returning in a ghost capacity).

In the Season 2 finale, Wagner is left bleeding out on a park bench with multiple stab wounds in his back. While Morgan (Kaitlin Olson) does show up and attempts to save him, it’s unclear whether he makes it or not. The cliffhanger was extreme, to say the least, and it’s sparked more than a few jaw drops (and tears) from viewers.

Steve Howey is leaving High Potential, but it might not be a permanent departure. It appears he’s stepping away only as a series regular, meaning he could still return in Season 3 and beyond as a guest star. That would likely cut his screen time down considerably, or limit appearances to something like a spirit, given he doesn’t survive those stab wounds to the back.

Season 2 actually marked Steve’s final run as a series regular, according to Deadline. He reportedly signed just a one-year deal, which could mean the writers only needed him in that capacity for that period. If that’s the case, it might hint that his character either dies or is shifted out of the spotlight, paving the way for new characters to come in.

That said, the fate of the show itself is still up in the air, per Deadline. Todd Harthan exited after overseeing Seasons 1 and 2, and now the series is looking for a new showrunner so they and the writing team can move forward with Season 3.

So while reports suggest Steve was only meant to be a short-term series regular on High Potential, this might not be the end of his character.

Wagner decides to attend a secret meeting solo in a park to gain more information about Morgan’s ex-husband Roman, who’s been missing for over a decade. Things go awry, though, and Wagner is left bleeding out in the park with multiple stab wounds to his back. Morgan does eventually arrive (thankfully), but it’s unclear whether Wagner survives his injuries or where his character goes from here.

But Kaitlin did sit down with TV Insider in early 2026 to discuss Steve’s fate on the show, and it sounds like some answers could be coming in Season 3. First and foremost, she said, “I strongly believe that the Roman thing needs to reveal itself sooner rather than later, or people are going to start to get annoyed. People like me.” So viewers might actually find out what happened to him.

As for Wagner, Kaitlin shared, “It’s very up in the [air]. I’m not even giving you a spoiler or not because we don’t know yet. We don’t know. There’s probably a hospital close by, but boy, was he stabbed a lot [with] lots of blood.”

Given that Steve was only on a one-year contract as a series regular, coupled with the fact that he has other projects he’s working on like Off Campus and Ransom Canyon, we could see him return, just in a less demanding capacity.