‘Rectify’ returns for aftermath of murder

Associated Press

NEW YORK

Abigail Spencer remembers being about to shoot a scene for last season’s “Rectify.” It was set in a hospital room as Daniel, played by series star Aden Young, came out of the coma from his brutal beat-down. At bedside was his devoted sister Amantha, played by Spencer.

Cameras were ready to roll. “Then Aden whispers to me, ‘I don’t know what I’m about to do.’ And I was like, ‘Me neither!”’ Spencer bursts into laughter. “It’s this magical thing: There’s only so much technical process you can bring. Then comes a moment of release.”

On this show, the word “release” is somewhat loaded.

Peabody Award-winning “Rectify” (which begins its third season July 9 at 10 p.m. on SundanceTV) is a quiet yet painfully evocative drama about a man jailed two decades earlier for the rape and murder of his teenage girlfriend. Then, when his conviction was vacated thanks to new evidence, he re-entered his small Georgia hometown as a disruptive force who rekindled old questions that plague the community: Was he innocent all along? Or now is he getting away with murder?

“Rectify” feels as true to life as drama can get. And as its story continues to unfold, it seems to have taken on a life of its own, which not only keeps the viewer absorbed, but also keeps the people making it surprised.

At least, that’s what you glean from a lively conversation with TV siblings Spencer and Young as well as Ray McKinnon, the occasional actor (“Sons of Anarchy”) and Oscar-winning filmmaker who created, writes and produces the series. (A back-to-back marathon of its previous 16 episodes starts today at 2 p.m.)

“You can never take for granted what you think each scene will be about, or who, and that’s the joy of it for an actor,” said Young.