Jonathan Daviss Thinks Pope Will Go To College... Eventually

Spoiler alert: This article discusses plot points from Part 1 of Outer Banks Season 4. For the first three seasons of Outer Banks, Pope struggled with a constant tug-of-war between adventuring with his friends and going off to school to fulfill his intellectual potential. At the end of Season 3, a voiceover from John B revealed Pope was finally preparing to start college. However, the new season sees Pope still living the Pogue life. Jonathan Daviss tells Elite Daily that although Pope may not be prioritizing his education right now, it’s still something he sees for his future.

“I still think he thinks he can go to school,” Daviss says. “He knows it'll be the long way around, so he's been pushing it off because of that, but he still continues to study. The idea of going to school now is such a long track for him that he's like, ‘I need to get something immediate. I need to make sure I'm good in the right now. I need to make sure I can continue to make money before I go put myself in student debt.’”

And of course, he can’t just ignore the familial bonds he’s built with his fellow Pogues. “This is his family, so he definitely feels a responsibility to stay with them and make sure everything runs smoothly,” Daviss says. “He's been invested in that treasure hunt since the beginning.”

A big part of that family is Pope’s girlfriend Cleo. After they first started dating last season, the two are facing some of their biggest hurdles in Season 4, including the unexpected loss of someone close to them.

Carlacia Grant describes how the vibe has shifted in Pope and Cleo’s relationship this season: “It's deeper. It's more mature,” Grant says. “It's easy to tell someone what you're going to do in a situation, but in this season, we're going to see what you actually do. This season, especially for Pope and Cleo, it’s all about how actions speak louder than words.”