Russian Doll: Natasha Lyonne Offers Update on Series’ Future

With a distinct sense of humor, genre-bending science fiction tropes, and a standout soundtrack, Russian Doll served as a unique part of the television space. The Netflix series surprised many when it returned for a sophomore season, and in the months since, there has been speculation as to whether or not the show could return for more. As series star and executive producer Natasha Lyonne recently revealed, she doesn’t think it’s out of the question to return to the world of Russian Doll, but it might be more akin to Fire Walk with Me spinning out of the events of Twin Peaks. 

“I think I’m seeing Russian Doll more and more as a Fire Walk with Me or something like the Twin Peaks journey, so you can have this kind of legacy to it. And then you’re allowed to kind of make a movie about it whenever you want, on your own timeline,” Lyonne explained. “I’ve had a very weird path, and I’m very aware that this is a very special time for me. I’m very grateful that it’s finally here. So, I just want to learn to develop some self-respect around that and play like the big boys, which is to follow where my instinct and interest is leading me. My job is to keep my head down and focus on the work. That’s what I do. I work really hard, and I love what I do, and Poker Face is hard as hell. I’ve got to memorize 60 pages a week. You have all these brilliant actors coming in who want to do an incredible job. So, you have to help them find the key of the music that the tone of Rian Johnson is in, because if it’s a guest director or something, they want to do a good job. It’s almost like you’re also the mayor in a weird way.”

“And I love these jobs,” Lyonne continued. “But yeah, I think I just want to take a few years for me, now that I finally have them, to really say, what the hell do I want? I see other people have the self-confidence to do that, and I think for so many years, I was just going where it was warm and taking what I could get and being grateful to have a job at all. So, I’m trying to really get quiet and figure out what this new iteration means.”

What is Russian Doll about?

Russian Doll follows a woman named Nadia who is caught in a time loop as the guest of honor at her seemingly inescapable 36th birthday party one night in New York City. She dies repeatedly, always restarting at the same moment at the party, as she tries to figure out what is happening to her. She meets a man who is experiencing the same thing in a different event. In season 2, Nadia is 10 days away from celebrating her 40th birthday when the 6 Train sends her back in time to 1982. She soon discovers she is trapped inside the body of her mother, Lenora, who is pregnant with her. Nadia decides to pursue the gold Krugerrands her mother lost that same year, in order to change the course of her family’s history.

In addition to Lyonne, Russian Doll also stars Charlie Barnett, Greta Lee, Annie Murphy, Chloe Sevigny, Elizabeth Ashley, and Rebecca Henderson.