Mayans MC: That Sons Of Anarchy Gemma Cameo, Explained

The spirit of Sons of Anarchy is alive and well in Mayans MC. In fact, it's even more alive than most fans of the FX biker drama expected. It was already known that Emilio Rivera would be reprising his Sons role as Mayans godfather Marcus Alvarez in the new series. That's far from the only link to Sons of Anarchy that can be found in the first episode of Mayans MC, though. Warning: The following contains spoilers from the pilot episode of Mayans MC.

In one of the episode's flashbacks to eight years before the current time, none other than former biker queen Gemma Teller (Katey Sagal) appears. She can be seen in the background of a prison visiting room as a recently-incarcerated EZ (JD Pardo) breaks up with Emily (Sarah Bolger). When the split gets louder and more dramatic than is allowed in prison, Gemma is seen more clearly, reacting.

While this is an exciting moment for Sons fans, it's not just a throwaway cameo. In fact, it's a small piece of a bigger puzzle according to Mayans MC co-creator Kurt Sutter. "Having Gemma there in the pilot was fun for us and will speak to something we want to do later on," he explained at the Television Critics Association press tour in a small group interview. "It's a little bit of a nod to Sons, but I think also there's a reason why she was there and we'll find out what it is later on."

As co-creator Elgin James told GameSpot, this isn't the last connection to the original series that will build to something more. "All these little things that [Kurt] plants all pay off somehow," he teased. "So that's all I know is that nothing is just thrown away."

Making sure nothing is a simple cameo is what helps Sutter to ensure Mayans MC doesn't trample on the mythology built by Sons, which is the one unbreakable rule James says he was given. As for what Gemma's appearance means, there's no telling. After all, while she was alive eight years ago, she's dead now. So anything they do to include Gemma in the Mayans storyline will have to remain in the past.

She’s also not necessarily the last Sons character fans will see pop up on Mayans MC. Truthfully, anyone is on the table--even Jax Teller (Charlie Hunnam) himself. That is, as long as it means something. "Whomever I bring back, I can't do it for a sensational one hit kind of thing," Sutter said. "There has to be an integral part of why it's important to the new mythology."

Still, Jax is a long shot. Hunnam has yet to appear on a TV series since the conclusion of Sons of Anarchy and has a number of films in the works. However, if it makes sense from a plot standpoint, Sutter isn't opposed to calling on his former star. "For me to bring Jax back in a flashback, it would really have to be integral to the story," he said.

Mayans MC airs Tuesdays at 10 PM ET on FX.