The Umbrella Academy spoilers follow.
Justin H Min has revealed that Ben Hargreeves has a huge transformation in season 3 of The Umbrella Academy.
Min has been on a whirlwind ride after Ben's ghost saved his sibling Viktor (Elliot Page) from their destructive powers before he faded away to nothing.
Yet, the shocking twist in the season 2 finale saw the superpowered siblings avoid another apocalypse in the '60s (or so they thought) and return to an altered version of the present where Ben is still alive.
Their adoptive father, Sir Reginald Hargreeves (Colm Feore), decided after their encounter in the '60s to select an entirely different group of individuals and build The Sparrows Academy instead.
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The Sparrows are a darker, brutal set of siblings and it seems Ben is about to be seen in a whole new light as he grew up in a completely different environment.
Min opened up to Entertainment Weekly about the meaner version of Ben in season 3, saying: "Steve and I really talked at length about this balancing act between nature versus nurture, and what that would do to someone like Ben.
"I think Ben, in his essence, is a very impressionable person, so I think nurture is a huge striving force behind whoever Ben is and whoever Ben becomes.
"So in this alternate reality where they're being trained as these assassins and mighty superheroes who are famous and well-known, these are all things that we talked about leaving a great impression on Ben."
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While fans might find the change in his character unpleasant, for The Umbrellas there's a jarring set of emotions as they are thrilled Ben's alive, but he's not the person they once knew.
Showrunner Steve Blackman explained: "I wanted the opportunity to bring a whole new life to this character and throw our family off.
"They remember Ben as being a kind and thoughtful person, but that is not who this Ben is. I wanted to see how they reacted to this totally different characterization of Ben."
The Umbrella Academy seasons 1-2 are now streaming on Netflix. Season 3 is due to premiere on June 22.
![The Umbrella Academy Season 1 [Blu-ray] [2019] [Region Free]](https://hips.hearstapps.com/vader-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/1655392197-512W8y7EkPS._SL500_.jpg?crop=1xw:1xh;center,top&resize=980:* "The Umbrella Academy Season 1 [Blu-ray] [2019] [Region Free]")
The Umbrella Academy Season 1 [Blu-ray] [2019] [Region Free]
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Jess is a freelance writer and editor with a passion for over-analysing everyone’s favourite movies and TV shows. As an English graduate from the University of York with an MA in Creative Writing, Jess worked as a magazine editor before turning freelance. Since then, Jess has written for outlets such as GQ, The Guardian, Inverse, Huff Post, Stylist, and Insider. She specialises in the representation of mental health, grief, and women in film. She’s also a major Marvel nerd and is writing a YA fantasy novel. LinkedIn
