Apple TV+Season 2 of Severance has now concluded on Apple TV+, meaning creator Dan Erickson is now spilling the beans about what’s just happened, including details of why Innie Helly is so different to Outie Helena.
It’s safe to say the Severance Season 2 finale was full of twists and turns, including revelations about Lumon’s “grand adendum,” the meaning of Cold Harbor, a tough decision for Mark, plus a shocking scene that was also blackly comic.
But a mini-mystery has also been brewing throughout the series, ever since we learned that Helly’s Outie is one-other-than Lumon luminary Helena Eagan.
But where the Innie and Outie versions of Mark, Dylan, and Irving have somewhat similar personalities – in that you can tell they are the same person – Helly and Helena could not be more different. Severance creator Dan Erickson has now explained why, meaning SPOILERS ahead…
Dan Erickson revelas difference between Helly and Helena in Severance
Apple TV+It’s all to do with “nature vs nurture.” Mark, Dylan, and Irving have been left to their own devices, growing and maturing naturally throughout their lives. Whereas from a young age, Helena has been groomed and shaped for Lumon glory. Which is why they are so different.
“Of all the outie characters, Helena is the one who is the most masked,” Erickson tells Rolling Stone. “I think that she was raised with a very specific purpose, which is to be the best Lumon leader that she can be.
“I like to think that when she was young, there was a lot more Helly in her. And a lot of that got stamped out. So she’s walking around, playing this character, without even realizing it, that she has been forced to craft. So I think that if Helly seems really different from her, that’s why.”
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I’d add that there also appears to be a lack of love in the Eagan household, which is most apparent in the Episode 9 scene where Helena eats breakfast in front of her father. As rather than being a sweet daddy-daughter get-together, it’s like something out of a horror movie.
Innie Helly has friends and is even falling in love, while Outie Helena appears to have neither, which helps to explain why she is so cold and distant, as well as that ruthless streak.
All episodes of Severance are currently streaming on Apple TV+ and you can now read our Season 2 Episode 10 recap. Alternatively head here for director Ben Stiller on how it all ends, and find out where it places on our list of the best TV shows of all-time.