The Buzz on Yellowjackets Aftershow: Liv Hewson on That Twisted Card Draw (VIDEO)
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What this place wants from us is violence. I know whats required from us, is what shes thinking, says Liv Hewson of their character, teenage Van, in this devastating eighth installment of Yellowjackets.
In our latest episode of The Buzz on Yellowjackets (be sure to watch the whole thing!), Hewson tells us it was Van who came up with the idea to use the card-drawing ritual (already in place to assign chores) to randomly decide who the group would kill and eat. Natalie (
Sophie Thatcher
) pulls the designated death card (the Queen of Hearts that Javi [Luciano Leroux] found while he was alone in the wilderness).
The others cards may hold meaning, too, but on a different level. Hewson says, The cards that we pull are in the scripts. When we got there on the day and were planning how to film it, it was like OK, do we need those cards in order, so the right people draw them? and the writers were like, Yes, we want to make sure those are the cards you draw. What that means going forward is anyones guess.
The cards may have been pre-selected, but that wasnt the case for the axes and knives the crazed pack picked up to hunt Natalie as she tried to escape. Hewson tells us the cast was given the opportunity to choose which weapon their character would grab for the hunt. I picked the rebar over the fire because it felt right to me. Theres a twofold instinctive reaction to that which is: This works as a weapon; I can hit something with this. I can poke something with this, Hewson says. And, also, I can carry something back to the cabin with it if necessary.
The hunt goes from terrifying to tragic as young Javi tries to lead Nat to safety but falls through the ice of a frozen lake. The girls let him drown. Van stands back and watches coolly as he begs for help. Thats what its all about now. Enough of the hope. Enough of the touchy feely. Enough of the crying. Its all about practical decision-making for her now. Its a divorce from feeling, which is not sustainable. Feelings catch up with everybody, and they will catch up with her, Hewson says.
Kailey Schwerman/SHOWTIME
Hewson saw the brutal turn of events coming when they got the script for Episode 7 and read the scene where Shauna pummels Lottie. It sinks in for Van that they are going to start killing and eating each other. There was something about the arrival of ritual violence. At the time I was like, This is when it occurs to Van that it is inevitable: They are going to start killing and eating each other.
And although 90s Van is convinced of the power of the wilderness, the adult Van (
Jasmin Savoy Brown
) become a force to be reckoned with or fall apart? Over the course of Season 2, I think there is a possibility of a real crack in the foundation for the two of them. Van spent so much of this season trying to get Taissa help, and Taissa wont take the help of course not, because its not good help. Van feels like shes out of options and out of resources. If I cant help you, protect you then what am I doing? What is this even? Whats going to happen to us? Those kids might be in trouble.
Check out the video for more of Hewsons reflections on Van and the other Yellowjackets; plus behind-the-scenes details about shooting the hunt in the woods and across the frozen lake; working with Lauren Ambrose; and Coach Bens (
Steven Krueger
) discovery of the underground sanctuary.
What was their reaction when they first read about Bens find? Im a little bit scared of caves so my immediate concern was are you going to make us get in a bunch of caves?! I got nervous, Hewson says with a laugh.
Yellowjackets, Sundays, 9/8c, Showtime (and Fridays on On Demand and Streaming)
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Friday, May 19, 2023 at 5:00 am