Danielle Brooks promised that season 6 of Orange is the new Black will be a revamped installment of the beloved Netflix series.
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After a shocking riot during the series’ fifth season, Brooks revealed things will not be looking good for the ladies of Litchfield Penitentiary.
“There’s no good that can come out of this riot,” Brooks told Variety. The actress stars as Tasha “Taystee” Washington, whose crusade to get justice for the murder of her friend and fellow inmate Poussey led to the riot and the eventual death of prison guard Piscatella.
Ahead of the show’s return for a new season on Netflix, Brooks revealed season six will explore new territories and feel like a new show, with many of our favorite characters headed to max.
“The structure is completely turned on its head, the structure of what we’re used to being at Litchfield — that’s over because we’re all going to max,” Brooks told the outlet. “There’s no way up from starting a riot in prison, especially when you’re already considered in the bottom of the barrel of society. You’re not really considered human, and so I was never expecting it to be a victorious moment at the end.”
She added, “These girls, they’re in for it. So this season’s really about survival, because all these other inmates from different prisons have heard about what has happened. There’s going to be so many different versions of the truth and how that manifests in each women’s outcome, it will be very interesting.”
With a new prison environment comes new dynamics and new tribes, which Brooks said will present a new challenge for the inmates.
“You have to start all over again while still trying to hold on to your tribe, while still trying to keep together this community of Litchfield in a new environment,” she said.
With the revamped season, the show will likely make right with fans and some cast members, who felt the season 5 pacing made it a weak installment of the show.
“I think the fans will feel somewhat satisfied, and I think the writers were really inventive this season,” Brooks said. “You’ll see some episodes that you just never would have imagined the direction taking that turn, and I think that’s pretty cool.”
“Orange has been such a trailblazer in changing the way in which we view television already, but the first episode will definitely start off that same way. It’s like, whoa — I’ve never thought of that, I’ve never seen that before in the storytelling,” she added.
Orange Is the New Black season 6 will be available to stream July 27 on Netflix.
