Warning: light spoilers ahead for season 2 of 13 Reasons Why.
Just ask anyone who’s seen season 2 of 13 Reasons Why: Montgomery "Monty" de la Cruz (Timothy Granaderos) is one of the worst TV characters ever.
Monty was always a jerk, but his truly terrible antics in season 2 definitely solidified his place on the most-hated character list, right up there next to Bryce Walker (aka Justin Prentice). Unfortunately, the hate Monty received on the show also transferred to Granaderos off-screen, as fans struggled to differentiate him from his character. But, according to him, none of the fan reactions were a surprise.
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“A handful of actors got backlash for their characters in season one. So I was totally prepared for the — excuse me — shitstorm that was to come,” Granaderos recently said in an interview with Popsugar. Monty mostly existed in the background of season 1. But in the latest season, the fellow popular athlete turned up his douchiness and sent terrorizing messages to other students during Hannah’s trial before also brutally assaulting Tyler in the final episode.
The latter is what really set fans off and after that proverbial “shitstorm” hit, Granaderos recalls how Prentice reached out to him to see how he was doing. According to Granaderos, the two actors talked about how passionate the fans are about the characters — something that doesn’t always bode well for them when they’re the ones terrorizing those beloved characters. Prentice even started the hashtag #TimIsNotMonty in order to cut back on some of the hate. Nonetheless, Granaderos is grateful for the support.
“People feel passionate, and they should, so I'm glad that they're reacting the way they are,” he said. “Hopefully they can all remember that I'm just an actor.”
Granaderos also went on to acknowledge that his character is terrible in the interview, but also said that he hopes season 3 of 13 Reasons Why delves into why Monty acts the way he does.
“I know that he's the aggressor and the bully, but bullies need help too,” Granaderos said. “You know, they're victims of a different type of mental health issue.”