From Hannah and Garrett to Allie and Dean: The ‘Off-Campus’ Cast Passes the Baton as Season 2’s Couple Is Officially Confirmed

Often, as a journalist, when you receive screeners for a TV series or film, you also receive a list of “do not reveals” that you aren’t allowed to discuss prior to the show’s release. Sometimes, they are split by episode; other times, it’s the entire season. Shockingly, Prime Video’s Off Campus only had two DNRs for the show’s first season: the songs and the couple that will be the leads in season 2. In Bridgerton-like fashion, the series will have other couples as the focus in their upcoming seasons, allowing us to dive deep into each pair’s story while still catching up with our favorite Briar U students as they finish their time on campus.

Ella Bright and Belmont Cameli had the hardest jobs on the squad, kicking things off as Hannah and Garrett, whose emotional yet sexy relationship in Elle Kennedy’s The Deal made them one of #BookTok’s most beloved couples. And if you’ve seen the show already—which we’re guessing you have because you’re reading this right now—then this is the moment you’ve been waiting for. We finally can confirm who is taking over in season 2: Mika Abdalla and Stephen Kalyn as Allie and Dean.

This shouldn’t come to a surprise considering they already shared some major moments in the last few episodes, but Prime Video did attempt a fake-out right before the show premiered on May 13, as Antonio Cipriano revealed India Fowler would join the cast as Grace Ivers, the love interest to Antonio’s John Logan, who serve as the leads from the second book of the series.

Instead, the series will be jumping ahead to book three and following The Score, bringing Allie and Dean into the spotlight. The duo already brought the heat as fans got to see the start of their relationship, especially in episode 6. Even though they’ve been in on it for a while, the two actors have also had to keep it all a secret from the world.

“And all I was thinking is, How are we going to do press? and What am I going to talk about? Because I literally can’t talk about anything that I was doing,” Mika told Cosmopolitan.

Luckily, they have a dynamic duo behind them ready to pass the torch and show them the ropes as production gears up again.

Cosmopolitan caught up with the cast on their press tour for an exclusive quad interview with Ella, Belmont, Mika, and Stephen where they spill the beans on leading an already beloved show, all the advice they’ve shared with each other, and what we can expect the next time we step on Briar U’s campus.

Ella and Belmont, how has it been being the ones getting to kick off this incredible series?

Belmont Cameli: I’ve never been a part of something that has so much anticipation ahead of time. These books are so popular. It’s a big responsibility to be the first couple. We just approached it with a ton of care, and it’s a team effort. We’re one piece of a larger ensemble. But as far as it goes with Garrett and Hannah, we just really leaned on each other and had a ton of fun.

Ella Bright: Being the first ones is such a cool opportunity. I can’t wait to hopefully get other seasons and watch everybody else shine! I’m just a big fan of the show!

As actors, you ultimately trust the writers and you bring their vision to life. But did you feel an extra responsibility to get it right for the fans who were already excited for the show?

Belmont Cameli: When we were making the show, we were aware, certainly, that there was a big fandom for these books, but we treated it like you would any other job in building Garrett and building out the relationship with Hannah and the friendships. Those were all super organic and not unlike other things I’ve done before. Rehearsals and time spent on scenes on set were all familiar to me. But what’s different is that we’re much more aware of how aware everybody else is.

Prime Video

Mika and Stephen, it was shocking to see how much of Allie and Dean’s story we already got in season 1. What was your reaction reading the scripts?

Mika Abdalla: I was afraid that I was gonna spill the beans on the situation. I knew before the first audition that we were kind of gonna dip into Allie’s story more than you would expect in season 1, so I had a little idea going into it. All I was thinking is, How are we going to do press? and What am I going to talk about? Because I literally can’t talk about anything that I was doing.

Stephen Kalyn: As Mika said, going into it with showrunner Louisa Levy, she told me ahead of time, “A lot of people like Dean and Allie and they’re going to be the second season.” I was like, Oh my gosh, okay, cool. We’re kind of like the b-storyline and so when we had our episode, working with Mika was great and the chemistry was pretty good. I think that fans are gonna really like what we did.

Mika Abdalla: [Deadpan] I hated working with Stephen.

Stephen Kalyn: Yeah, see, I completely lied there. [Laughs]

We’re following the pattern we’ve seen in other shows with a main couple each season, but it’s exciting that we’ll still see the others as it does take place in college.

Ella Bright: We felt that energy from the very beginning. The chemistry reads, we had 22 actors in the room. I thought going into it that it was just going to be Garrett and Hannah. I was just going up to have that romantic chemistry test. But me and Mika read together. The hockey team was getting established. Josh Heuston was there for Justin. It was just a really exciting day. It really felt like the main basis of the show that was driving it forward was these friendships and not just the romantic relationships.

Stephen Kalyn: We did a hockey camp. These guys needed a lot of practice.

Belmont Cameli: I’m so fast.

Stephen Kalyn: He’s really fast, actually! But we spent a lot of time together, so that really helped. Just on day one shooting, as a cast, we also hung out quite a bit.

Belmont Cameli: Part of the casting focus, at least from what I’ve discussed with our teams, was to put actors who are going to be friends together, which is an interesting aspect of casting. You don’t really hear that. Obviously, they wanted the best actor for each character, but they were also like, How can we build an actual friend group? And a testament to our casting team, they really did that. Ella and Belmont are doing season 1, but this is a whole team effort, in the way that hockey or music is.

Mika Abdalla: You feel like on sets before, there has been almost a feeling of—I don’t want to say a hierarchy because that sounds like negative connotations—that although Ella and Belmont were our leading forces, no one was treated any different. Louisa made that very clear to us in the beginning. She was like, “Everyone is the lead of the show at some point, and so it doesn’t really matter.”

Stephen Kalyn: The call sheet was in alphabetical order.

Prime Video

Prime Video

It’s very interesting to see how different characters interact with one another. Like the way that we see Allie interact with Hannah is so different than when we see her with anyone else.

Mika Abdalla: All these characters have a front and then you, throughout the season, see what’s underneath that. Having such a large ensemble and having all of us interact with each other, you’re seeing so many different relationships play out for each of these characters. The way that Garrett is with the hockey boys is completely different than he is with Hannah. There’s a lot of opportunity to dive into what these people are willing to show the world versus what they’re showing their close friends or partners.

Fans have been following y’all for quite some time now. Is it hard when you’re also creating relationships in real life, but people sometimes see just the characters?

Ella Bright: The Off Campus official account went live halfway through filming and, honestly, it was really encouraging to have that energy, and having people actually caring about what we were making was really cool. It was really surreal. Like just posting about us going out on the weekend and people either comparing it to the book or just liking us as actors was just really, really cool. It was definitely something I’ve never experienced before.

Belmont Cameli: I think fans are always like, “Oh my god, they’re just like their character!”

Stephen Kalyn: I could just scratch my head and they’d be like, “Dean would so do that in the same way.”

Belmont Cameli: In some ways, we’re all like our characters. I mean, that’s inevitable. But I don’t think it’s as much as fans think it is.

Mika and Ella, the Allie and Hannah relationship is one of my favorite things to see from the books. How was it creating that friendship in real life?

Ella Bright: We had the best time! It was so fun! All of our scenes together are my favorites, I think. They’re so chill. We lived in the same apartment when we were filming.

Mika Abdalla: Not in the same—we weren’t roommates!

Ella Bright: We stayed in the same building!

Mika Abdalla: We’re just like our characters!

Ella Bright: We saw each other every day!

Mika Abdalla: Literally every day. It was amazing! I would walk downstairs and I would be in my jammies and Ella would be coming back from her 10-mile walk. It made everything so easy. We had some brutal scenes. I was like, Aw, Ella’s crying.

Ella Bright: Oh, if I saw her cry…it all came very naturally. It was very sweet.

Do you like Stephen Kalyn? Mika Abdalla? Season 2 has got a lot of those two! Sign up now!

—BELMONT CAMELI

While there’s obviously the romance aspect of the story, there’s also some very heavy topics that these characters deal with. How did you all work together to bring those to life?

Stephen Kalyn: Let’s say Belmont is…I know he’s kind of having a bit of a rough day, I’ll kind of give him some sort of space. As soon as I see the headphones go on, it’s like, Okay, it’s game time, you know?

Belmont Cameli: I think in building Hannah’s and Garrett’s backstory but also the story that they’re presently in as it relates to the more dramatic elements of the show, those were treated with a lot of reverence and care. We had really thorough conversations about where they’re coming from and how they’re relating to those aspects of their stories. In Hannah’s case, the sexual assault, and in Garrett’s, the domestic abuse, were treated very specifically and honestly in the show. Hopefully, they ended up being really meaningful for people who can relate to those stories or even to those who can’t relate. We really put our heads together and put our hearts out there and lent ourselves to those situations.

Ella Bright: Because we were all so close, we’re able to be so vulnerable with each other and give each other that emotional space to kind of go to those more upsetting places. We were always like that to comfort each other and talk through things. It was a really great space and environment to be in.

Belmont Cameli: It felt so safe all of the time.

Mika and Stephen, how did seeing and learning from Belmont and Ella allow you to prepare for what’s coming up next with Dean and Allie next season?

Stephen Kalyn: I learned a lot from these two, these great actors over here. I’m just really excited to get into that world.

Mika Abdalla: They had so much heavy lifting to do this season, while we all got to hang out and have a good time. Watching them in the trenches, I’m a little nervous, but I am excited. We’re really looking forward to getting the scripts and seeing what we have coming for us, because we’ve heard little bits about what’s about to happen. As actors, we’re ready to be serious.

Belmont Cameli: I’ll say, too, I’m very excited to pass the torch. They’re so ready for it.

Belmont and Ella, you’re definitely going to have a bit more fun with what’s up next. How is it getting to still explore your characters while also supporting these two?

Ella Bright: It’s exciting. I just can’t wait to watch it. Dean and Allie’s storyline is so fun. During season 1, we got two episodes block-by-block. So during these read-throughs, it was all new. And we were just reacting like people who might be watching the show for the first time. So I actually just can’t wait for that experience again, because I find the script so entertaining to read, let alone film.

Belmont Cameli: And Hannah and Garrett’s story goes on. At the end of season 1, they’ve begun to really invest in a relationship together. We’ll see the beginnings of what their relationship looks like. It’s not going to be perfect from the very beginning. I’m sure there will be some more levity in the Hannah and Garrett story in season 2 than there was in 1.

Prime Video

Have any of you had conversations with your fellow ensemble members about their future seasons?

Belmont Cameli: Those stories will come later if we’re so fortunate to get more seasons, but we’re starting those stories in some ways in season 1. We begin to weave the beginning threads of those stories as soon as our season comes out. Eventually, if we’re so lucky, Antonio and Jalen and their counterparts will get to step up and be the leads in those stories. They have a longer launch, so that’s kind of exciting.

What storylines of each other’s were you most excited to see come to life?

Belmont Cameli: Episode 6!

Ella Bright: Both times we read and then watched, episode 5, in particular, stands out to me. Allie is being very mysterious throughout the whole episode, and then the cliffhanger at the end, where you see that they hooked up. We were just screaming, jumping up and down when we watched it! It was so exciting! It’s our favorite episode as a community, and it’s the best! It’s so fun. I love that episode.

Belmont Cameli: And the beginning of 6!

Ella Bright: Yeah, the beginning of 6 is insane!

Belmont Cameli: You time-jump back and you stay with Mika on the couch and you see what ended up happening. Going backward in the narrative is so compelling. I love the first 20 minutes of episode 6. When I read that, I was like, Let’s go, Stephen and Mika!

Mika Abdalla: For me, every time I watch the “Baby Now That I’ve Found You” scene where he’s skating and he’s all sad and she’s up there, it’s, like, chills. It’s my favorite. It’s so good. I love that.

Stephen Kalyn: Number 5 was a really interesting one. I remember when we got the scripts, I look over and I see Ella and Belmont in the corner of the room on their laptop, staring at it. I’m like, Oh, we’re in for a good treat.

Belmont Cameli: We broke for lunch when we got that episode and we were in the house, so there were people everywhere. Everyone went to lunch and we just sat there silently scrolling. Like, “What page are you on?”

Prime Video

With Allie and Dean being such a big secret this whole time, what does it feel like to finally be able to speak the truth on it?

Mika Abdalla: When the trailer came out, my social media was filled with a lot of theories about scenes that I haven’t even remembered, that weren’t even in the books, and people just getting excited and theorizing about what that could mean. I’m excited for everything to make sense and for everyone to see the story play out.

Dean and Allie has definitely been a really hard secret because it’s such a cool part of the season 1. People theorizing what season 2 might be or what season 3 might be and it’s like, Oh, you’re gonna get season 1 Dean and Allie as well.

Ella Bright: It’s really fun for that to be revealed! Wait, why can’t we talk about the music?

Belmont Cameli: Don’t say music!

Ella Bright: I don’t know!

Belmont Cameli: Well, there’s a lot of original music in there!

Mika Abdalla: I remember in our big table read with the big executives, Ella just sitting there singing, “The Bitch Is Back.”

Ella Bright: They called me the night before and they were like, “We just like to really get the atmosphere and pitch the show for everybody. We’re gonna have you sing to the script.” And I…oh my god, I was so nervous. The music plays in the far end of the room and I couldn’t really hear it. And I just whispered to Bel and was just like, “I’m so sorry for what’s about to happen.”

Belmont Cameli: It was amazing!

Ella Bright: I mean, it was greater than I thought it was gonna be so…

Mika Abdalla: And we didn’t really know each other that well then either.

Stephen Kalyn: They put me and Mika together, like squished in…

Mika Abdalla: We never speak to each other in that first episode, but we’re still huddled together.

Belmont Cameli: It was a Game of Thrones–style conference room and the Amazon executive producer is staring at us.

Ella Bright: It was so scary!

What do you want to tell fans as they get excited for season 2?

Belmont Cameli: Do you like Stephen Kalyn? Mika Abdalla? Season 2 has got a lot of those two! Sign up now!