Survival has never looked quite this dangerous – especially when you’re your own worst enemy. As anticipation builds for Yellowjackets‘ third season, Sophie Nélisse has revealed that her character Shauna’s descent into darkness is far from over. Speaking to Collider during the Sundance Film Festival, where she was promoting her film Two Women, the actress detailed how the aftermath of Season 2’s traumas will push Shauna to unprecedented extremes when the series returns to Showtime and Paramount+ on February 14th.
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“She’s had such a beautiful arc every season,” Nélisse told Collider. “I think Season 2 really showcased all of the grief, and she’s undergone so much loss, and I think she’s kind of isolated herself from the group.”
The actress warns that this isolation sets the stage for an explosive third season, explaining, “She is in so much pain, but she can’t handle it herself, so I think she needs to let go of that anger on other people. So I think she’ll be very unhinged and very scary, very unpredictable, and like I said, nothing to lose.”
This darker turn isn’t limited to young Shauna. The recently released trailer shows adult Shauna (Melanie Lynskey) embracing an equally ruthless mindset, declaring that “the only way to be safe is to be the only one left” – suggesting a potentially deadly divergence from her fellow survivors.
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The series, which has drawn in audiences with its dual-timeline narrative following a high school soccer team’s survival after a 1996 plane crash and their adult lives 25 years later, continues to push boundaries in its storytelling. Season 3 picks up in the aftermath of their cabin burning down, forcing the young survivors to seek new shelter in the harsh winter wilderness. Meanwhile, the present-day storyline grapples with the first death of an adult team member, promising to explore how trauma echoes across decades.
The new season welcomes Academy Award winner Hilary Swank to its already impressive ensemble cast, which includes Christina Ricci, Lauren Ambrose, and Elijah Wood. However, the season will notably continue without Juliette Lewis, following her character’s shocking departure in the Season 2 finale.
With its February 14th premiere date, Yellowjackets is taking an ironically dark approach to Valentine’s Day programming. The first two episodes will debut together, followed by weekly releases until the April 13th season finale. Both timelines appear to be reaching new levels of intensity, with scenes of past Shauna howling in the wilderness and present-day Misty engaging in literal backstabbing, suggesting that the show’s signature blend of horror and psychological trauma remains firmly intact.
