'Yellowjackets': 10 burning questions we have for Season 3

2023-05-26 13:29

We made it through the wilderness of Yellowjackets Season 2 — and just like at

We made it through the wilderness of Yellowjackets Season 2 — and just like at the end of Season 1, we have many questions.

This season gave us several of the answers we craved from Season 1, including how the Yellowjackets' cannibalism even started and what happened to Shauna's (Sophie Nélisse and Melanie Lynskey) wilderness baby. However, it's also opened up the floodgates to a whole new slew of mysteries that we're hoping get solved next season.

From our most far-fetched fan theories to some Season 1 secrets that have yet to be revealed, here are 10 burning questions we have for Yellowjackets Season 3.

1. How will the Yellowjackets survive without their cabin?

Liv Hewson in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kimberley French / Showtime

Yellowjackets went out in a literal blaze of glory, with Coach Ben (Steven Krueger) setting fire to the Yellowjackets' cabin. Without their shelter, and with winter still going strong, how will the team stay alive until their inevitable rescue?

We know based on the very start of Season 1 that the Yellowjackets will continue their cannibalistic hunting ritual whenever they need food. Crucially, though, we don't know where they'll be living at that point. Will they construct their own shelter, or will they hunker down in already-existing structures like the plane wreckage or the meat shed? Whatever they choose to do, it's clear that the difficulty of their survival has just skyrocketed. The loss of the cabin can only lead to more tension and strife going forward.

2. Is Coach Ben still alive in the present?

Steven Krueger in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kailey Schwerman / Showtime

Since no one ever mentions Ben in the present-day timeline, it's highly likely that he doesn't actually survive the team's stint in the wilderness. However, we've predicted several times that Ben's death was imminent, and he's just kept on kicking despite the odds. At this point, it feels like you can't count him out. Plus, Season 2 of Yellowjackets surprised us with the arrival of adult Van (Lauren Ambrose) and Lottie (Simone Kessell), so there's a chance we've got a Ben Surprise coming.

Aside from questions of Ben's survival, the most interesting aspect of his storyline going forward is how — and if — he'll continue to interact with the rest of the Yellowjackets in the wilderness. After all, he did try to burn them to death once he realized the Cannibal Cult was not a one-time thing. Will the team ever realize that it was Ben who destroyed their cabin? Will they even be able to find him in his underground hideout? We may just be in for a Coach Ben-Yellowjackets showdown next season.

3. Wait, is Nat actually the Antler Queen?

Sophie Thatcher in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kailey Schwerman / Showtime

One of the major twists of the Yellowjackets Season 2 finale is teen Lottie's (Courtney Eaton) revelation that she can no longer hear the mysterious "wilderness" after teaching the other Yellowjackets to connect with it. Lottie declares that the team needs a new leader — especially since she never wanted the job anyway — and appoints Nat (Sophie Thatcher) in her stead.

So how will Nat lead the Yellowjackets, now that she's in charge? If the team realizes Ben was behind the fire, will she try to hunt him down despite their closeness? Will she continue the cannibalism ritual and the worship of the wilderness, even though she was so against it at the start of the season? And if so, does this mean that it's Nat under the Antler Queen veil, and not Lottie?

There are a few ways the Antler Queen could still be Lottie: Perhaps Nat continues to uplift her as a spiritual figure. Or maybe the loss of the cabin right after Nat's ascension will lead the rest of the survivors to turn back to Lottie. But with the Yellowjackets' leadership all shaken up, the true identity of Antler Queen we see in Season 1's opening sequence is still unknown.

4. Once again, who is Pit Girl? And who is next on Shauna's chopping block?

Liv Hewson, Sophie Thatcher, Jasmin Savoy Brown, and Sophie Nélisse in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kailey Schwerman / Showtime

Two seasons in, and we still don't know who the mysterious Pit Girl is. At this point, maybe it doesn't matter: Cannibalism on Yellowjackets is now in full swing, and we know which team members actually survive to the present. But given that Yellowjackets opens with Pit Girl, it would be nice to know whose death we've been theorizing about for years now.

Speaking of death theories, which of the Yellowjackets should we plan to say goodbye to next? We know more cannibalism is coming, but we don't know who will be on the menu. Given the intense level of rituals surrounding Pit Girl's execution, it seems like we're still a few deaths away from her. But who knows, maybe Nat will kick off her leadership era with a new hunt to calm the wilderness for taking their shelter. (This is normally where I'd say that Ben is dying next, but after his track record this season, I think we'll be keeping him on the "alive" roster for a bit longer.)

5. What's the deal with the man with no eyes and the mysterious symbol?

Jasmin Savoy Brown in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kimberley French / Showtime

Here's another question that carries over from Season 1, but it bears repeating! This season, we learn a little bit more about Taissa's (Jasmin Savoy Brown and Tawny Cypress) sleepwalking and the terrifying visions she gets of the man with no eyes. As teen Van (Liv Hewson) discovers, Tai's sleepwalking leads her to trees with the creepy symbol of the hanging girl carved into them, suggesting that she's somehow more connected to the wilderness than she originally thought.

However, when Tai embraces Lottie's teachings, she stops sleepwalking. Any chance we had of getting further answers dissipates. Will Season 3 finally get to the bottom of the freaky symbol's true meaning? And is it in any way connected to the French Canadian man who lived and died in the cabin?

6. How will the present-day Yellowjackets grieve the loss of Natalie?

Juliette Lewis in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kailey Schwerman / Showtime

By far the biggest surprise of the Yellowjackets Season 2 finale is the loss of present-day Nat (Juliette Lewis). Her death is an accident: Misty (Christina Ricci) injects her with phenobarbital she meant for Lottie's acolyte Lisa (Nicole Maines), and there's nothing the remaining Yellowjackets can do to save her.

Since its very first episode, Yellowjackets has examined how its characters process their past traumas from the time in the wilderness. With Nat's death, they add another, more recent trauma to the mix. How will the survivors cope? Will Shauna feel survivor's guilt in the same way that Nat did when Javi died (Luciano Leroux), given that she drew the queen card? Will this new death alleviate Tai's sleepwalking or make it worse? Will Van and Lottie get drawn further into the cult of the wilderness with the knowledge that they still sacrificed someone?

The Yellowjacket I'm most concerned about here is Misty. Nat's death marks the second time this season that Misty has accidentally killed her best friend, after Crystal's (Nuha Jes Izman) deadly fall in the past timeline. While Misty's never seemed too guilty about her more nefarious plots, this time the guilt and parallels to the past may eat her alive.

7. What's next for the Sadecki family?

Warren Kole and Sarah Desjardins in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kailey Schwerman / Showtime

What a wild season it's been for Shauna, Jeff (Warren Kole), and Callie (Sarah Desjardins). After confessions of murder and some run-ins with smarmy cops, the Sadecki family has never been closer. Plus, they've successfully escaped police scrutiny thanks to Walter's (Elijah Wood) help. With all that chaos behind them, hopefully they can take some time for normal bonding. This being Yellowjackets, though, there's no way normalcy is on the docket. Jeff's frightening dream sequence of Shauna Scissorhands suggests that he may fear her more in the future, while Callie's spectacular Season 2 arc hints at her embracing more of her own Shauna-esque wildness.

8. Will Misty and Walter get together?

Elijah Wood in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kailey Schwerman / Showtime

Look, Misty is dealing with a lot right now, so I understand if she doesn't want to jump into a relationship just yet. That being said, I desperately hope my oddball detective ship gets together soon, because Walter and Misty just complete each other! Misty involved Walter in an exciting case, while Walter helped her and her friends escape from a sticky situation with the police. True love, everyone! Someday, I hope the two of them can ride off into the sunset together, singing show tunes and solving mysteries (with Caligula along for the ride, of course).

9. Is Taissa's wife, Simone, alive?

Tawny Cypress in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kailey Schwerman / Showtime

We haven't heard from Tai's wife, Simone (Rukiya Bernard), since the pair's car crash, as Tai spent the rest of the season reuniting with Van and the other Yellowjackets. Since Tai and Van still appear to have feelings for each other, there's a high likelihood that Yellowjackets will explore the loose thread of Simone — as well as her and Tai's son Sammy (Aiden Stoxx) — in Season 3. After all, Tai is the most public-facing of the Yellowjackets as a state senator. How will her retreat to Lottie's wellness community and presence at Nat's death impact her family life and career?

10. Is the wilderness actually appeased?

Courtney Eaton in "Yellowjackets." Credit: Kimberley French / Showtime

The hunt for Shauna did not go as planned, but if Lottie is to be believed, Nat's death still gave the wilderness what it wanted. Does that mean the surviving Yellowjackets will find peace again? And if that's the case, how long will it be until the dark forces of the wilderness demand blood once more? There's no way that biding time between sacrificial rituals is a sustainable solution for any of these women, so as Yellowjackets enters its third season, a major question remains: How will the Yellowjackets rid themselves of the darkness they brought back?

Yellowjackets Season 2 is now streaming on Showtime.