Showtime’s shock hit Yellowjackets is coming again for a second season, and followers of teenage angst, wilderness survival, cannibalism or all the above are understandably pumped.
The twin-timeline puzzle field present follows a highschool soccer crew (the titular Yellowjackets) after a devastating airplane crash within the Canadian wilderness. We see each the speedy mid-’90s aftermath, and the lingering trauma and intrigue nonetheless following the survivors 25 years later. There could also be one thing supernatural afoot. There’s undoubtedly one thing cultish happening. And, like I stated, there’s cannibalism.
Season 1’s 10-episode run earned an surprising cult following (to not point out just a few Emmy nods), due to the thriving cottage business of Reddit fan theorizing and the canny stunt casting of ’90s icons Melanie Lynskey, Christina Ricci and Juliette Lewis. It was so common, actually, that Showtime announced a season 2 earlier than the primary season had even completed airing.
Warning: Spoilers forward for Yellowjackets season 1.
Yellowjackets season 2 launch date and easy methods to watch
So, how do you truly watch Yellowjackets? You can stream the primary episode of Yellowjackets season 2 on Friday, March 24, with a Showtime subscription (or by bundling Showtime with present accounts like Amazon Prime Video and Hulu). New episodes will change into accessible on demand every Friday. Cable subscribers also can catch new episodes each Sunday, with the season 2 premiere airing on Showtime on Sunday, March 26, at 9 p.m. ET.
Manufacturing on season 2 started final August, according to the show’s official Twitter account, following a gradual drip of stories about new additions to the solid (extra on that beneath). Then Showtime introduced the second season premiere date with a teaser trailer on Dec. 7, 2022, together with this promise: “You will not be hungry for much longer.” The information got here a couple of 12 months after the series was initially picked up for season 2.
On Jan. 13, we received one other teaser for the upcoming season, which wrapped filming in mid-February. A number of solid members commemorated the top of filming with a social media tribute. Actress Tawny Cypress, who performs grownup Taissa, posted a group photo on Instagram on Feb. 11, with the caption “Later gators.” Simone Kessel (becoming a member of the solid in season 2 as grownup Lottie) additionally posted about the milestone with an Instagram photograph, captioned “That is a hallelujah wrap on Season 2.” Samantha Hanratty (teen Misty) shared a wintry selfie for her final day on set, and Melanie Lynskey (grownup Shauna) tweeted a “sappy” panegyric to her colleagues.
Yellowjackets solid: Who’s new in season 2 and who’s getting back from season 1?
Due to the comparatively low physique depend in its first season, many of the essential Yellowjackets solid will probably be returning for season 2. Within the present-day timeline, Melanie Lynskey returns as grownup Shauna, Christina Ricci as grownup Misty, Juliette Lewis as grownup Natalie and Tawny Cypress as grownup Taissa. Their teenage counterparts may also return to the ’90s timeline, with Sophie Nélisse reprising the position of teenage Shauna, Samantha Hanratty as teen Misty, Sophie Thatcher as teen Natalie and Jasmin Savoy Brown as teen Taissa.
Lauren Ambrose as grownup Van in Yellowjackets season 2.
Kailey Schwerman/SHOWTIME
Two characters poised to change into much more distinguished in season 2 are Van and Lottie, each of whom have been seen solely within the ’90s timeline so far. (Vanessa Palmer and Courtney Eaton will probably be returning as teen Van and teen Lottie, respectively.) It seems like each characters make it out of the woods alive. Lauren Ambrose of Six Toes Underneath fame will be part of the solid as grownup Van, a lot to the delight of armchair casting administrators in all places, and Simone Kessell (from Disney Plus’ Obi-Wan Kenobi) joins as grownup Lottie, our Antler Queen.
Simone Kessell as grownup Lottie in Yellowjackets season 2.
Kailey Schwerman/SHOWTIME
A number of different new faces are becoming a member of the hive (nest? charred fuselage?) in season 2: Elijah Wooden (Lord of the Rings) will play a “citizen detective” named Walter who tangles with Misty within the current timeline. Nicole Maines will play Lisa, an affiliate of grownup Lottie. Nuha Jex Isman additionally joins the solid, as Crystal, a good friend of grownup Misty, and François Arnaud will play Coach Ben’s boyfriend, although it is unclear by which timeline. Plus, Lynskey’s real-life husband, Jason Ritter, will seem in no less than one episode this season – no phrase but on his character.
It is secure to say we can’t be seeing grownup Jackie or grownup Laura Lee in subsequent casting information – fan theories be damned, they’re certainly lifeless. In an interview with Deadline, showrunner Ashley Lyle confirmed it: “I’ll say that in case there may be any doubt, Jackie could be very a lot lifeless in that scene,” Lyle stated.
However that does not imply we can’t see snippets of their teen selves in flashbacks or cult-sanctioned, drug-fueled hallucination sequences. A scroll by means of IMDb verifies solely that Ella Purnell (teen Jackie) and Jane Widdop (teen Laura Lee) will not make an look within the season 2 premiere, however subsequent episodes are anybody’s guess. One other trace from Lyle: “You are not closed off to the opportunity of seeing Ella [Purnell] sooner or later.”
Christina Ricci as Misty and Elijah Wooden as Walter in Yellowjackets season 2.
Kailey Schwerman/Showtime
Will there be a Yellowjackets season 3?
Whereas filming of the second season was nonetheless underway, Showtime introduced it had already renewed Yellowjackets for a third season. What do we all know thus far about season 3? Not an entire lot!
We do know that the collection was initially pitched with a five-season arc. Whether or not showrunners Lyle and Bart Nickerson follow that, and whether or not the community assist continues, stays to be seen. However all indicators at present level to an extended, profitable tenure for Yellowjackets.
Yellowjackets plot: What’s going to season 2 be about?
Let’s piece collectively a few of the information we have already gotten about season 2. First, winter is coming. The season of snow made its brutal entrance within the season 1 finale, and teaser trailers and pictures counsel it’s going to be an total frigid setting this season. Actor Warren Kole, who performs Jeff, talked about “intense work in harsh conditions,” in an Instagram remark. Actor Steven Krueger (Coach Ben) corroborated, telling TV Insider, “This season will cowl the winter months. It’ll get dire on the market with little meals and the problem of staying heat and alive.” And if that is not sufficient proof, in an interview with Variety, showrunner Ashley Lyle quipped: “We’ve been calling season 2 ‘The Winter of Their Discontent.'”
The antler queen and her cult.
Paul Sarkis/Showtime
We additionally know that the season 2 premiere is titled Mates, Romans, Countrymen (a nod to Marc Antony’s eulogy of Julius Caesar, as written by Shakespeare?), adopted by episode 2, Edible Complicated (a nod to… consuming your mates, Romans and countrymen?). It is secure to say there are extra energy struggles and extra cannibalism to come back.
We’ve gotten another crumbs right here and there, largely imprecise teases. “It will get gnarly and scary and darkish… and fucking twisted,” Elijah Wood said. “Now we’re actually exploring feminine rage,” said executive producer Jonathan Lisco. And from Krueger again: “Should you thought season 1 was loopy, simply buckle your seatbelts for season 2. It would not let up.”
Season 2 may also probably reply a few of the burning questions raised in season 1, like who’s going to get eaten and what occurs to Shauna’s child? (Please do not let these two questions be associated in any means.) Is grownup Taissa secretly a member of Lottie’s cult, or is she only a very sadistic sleepwalker? Who kidnapped Natalie within the season 1 finale? What had been grownup Lottie and grownup Van as much as through the occasions of season 1? Who killed Travis? Who else survived the forest – and who else did not? And for the love of god, what’s the cope with that creepy stick determine image displaying up in all places?
We’ll hopefully get some solutions – and probably a ton of further questions – when Yellowjackets returns to Showtime for season 2.
