Yellowjackets' co-creator addresses fans' divisive response to season 2 and explains how it affects season 3. The Emmy-nominated drama series weaves two timelines following the aftermath of a plane crash, when the Yellowjackets all-girl soccer team spent 19 months trapped in the wilderness. Season 2 received praise for its well-crafted narrative that weaves past and present in its exploration of trauma. However, the season's ending also received some negative comments, with fans being disappointed about the direction the show was taking heading into Yellowjackets season 3.
Co-creator Ashley Lyle told Vanity Fair that audience feedback for Yellowjackets has been "overwhelming." With season 2 facing all the high expectations fans have, audience reception has been "wildly varied." Furthermore, with Yellowjackets receiving Emmy nominations, everyone "got up in their heads" in season 2, and with the third season, they wanted to return to what they love. Check out what she said below:
Audience feedback is very overwhelming on any front. Whether it is the extremity with which some fans have connected with the show—there are costumes, there are tattoos, there are people who have watched over and over again—or on the other side, of course, there are criticisms, there are expectations, there are people who had an idea of where they wanted things to go and it maybe didn’t go in that direction. That’s natural, and that’s to be expected as well.
Season one was a vacuum. Nobody knows what it is. There are no expectations. Season two was quite overwhelming going into it, knowing now that there were people who had hopes and dreams and expectations for the show. Some people loved it and some people did not like it as much as season one. You really can’t functionally and practically do much of anything with that, because you have to make the show for yourself—for everybody involved—for the actors, for everybody who is pouring their hearts and souls into it.
In a way, season three allowed us to just come back to that a little bit. Even talking to some of the actors at dinner last week, they were saying that they felt really great about this season. In season two, all of a sudden they got up in their heads with the Emmy nominations and what could be. They felt like this season, they were making it for themselves again. That’s how we felt as well. Of course, you hope that people love it, but if you’re trying to make something based on feedback, you’re going to go a little insane, because the feedback is so wildly varied. We just tried to make a show that we loved, and that we felt proud of and that we felt good about.
Season 3 Will Focus On The Story
Picking up after the events of the Yellowjackets season 1 finale, season 2 sees the girls struggling to survive in the harsh winter while their grown-up selves are still haunted by what happened in the woods. While season 2 has many great moments, it also received complaints about the last few episodes when the girls decide to hunt and feed on one of their own. Lyle's comments indirectly validate the divisive reviews season 2 received, with the show having to deal with anticipation, fame, and awards.
Going into season 3, the show's creator promised that season 3 would not be influenced by off-screen drama or reception in any way. Instead, Yellowjackets will be creatively faithful to the story and the characters and reconnecting with what made the show so great in season 1. The creator's comments also indicated that story-wise, season 3 will not hold back, nor will the writers push the story or characters in a specific way due to fans' expectations.
Our Take On Yellowjackets Season 3
Going Back To What They Love Is Exactly What Yellowjackets Needs
Yellowjackets season 2 ends on a cliffhanger and teases the start of the girls' sinister hunting game. With the fire consuming the cabin in flames, the girls are forced to live in the wilderness. Yellowjackets had teased a much darker hunting ritual in season 1, foreshadowing the horrible things that are yet to come, and a huge part of the intrigue lies in seeing how things unfold.
Season 2's card game does feel rushed, leaving many stones unturned in terms of how the Yellowjackets team went from starving quietly to deciding to hunt and eat one of their own. It seems that things just changed in a heartbeat because they were running out of time. By focusing on the show creators' visions, the forthcoming season will tap more into character development and storytelling, which is exactly what Yellowjackets needs.
Source: Vanity Fair
Release Date November 14, 2021
Seasons 2
Streaming Service(s) Paramount+ with Showtime
Writers Ashley Lyle , Bart Nickerson
Showrunner Ashley Lyle , Bart Nickerson , Jonathan Lisco
English (US) ·