Warning: Spoilers for the Severance season 2 finaleDichen Lachman (Gemma), Adam Scott (Mark), and Britt Lower (Helly) react toSeveranceseason 2’s shocking cliffhanger ending. After an entire season of trying to find Gemma, Mark finally does during the season 2 finale, and rescues her from the testing floor’s Cold Harbor room, and they escape back to the severed floor where they revert to their innies. While Gemma leaves through the exit staircase, theSeveranceseason 2 endingsees innie Mark deciding to stay inside Lumon and runs off with Helly, leaving Gemma heartbroken.
During an interview withPeople,Dichen Lachman shared her reaction toSeveranceseason 2’s ending. She says that, while audiences have spent so much time with Mark and Helly, she hopes that they are equally invested in outie Mark’s relationship with Gemma, calling it “a really difficult situation.” Lachman also discussed diving deeper into her dual character, which she found thrilling yet daunting:
I think I read [episode] 10 just before we started filming [episode] 10 and 7. I just remember being like, “Oh wow, this is going to be interesting to see the reaction.” Obviously, the fans have spent so much time with Helly R. and Mark S., and so they’re invested in that. But after [episode] 7, they’re also hopefully invested in Mark’s outie’s relationship more as well. It’s a really difficult situation.
It was so wonderful because so much of Gemma for so long had just been little fragments. To really live in that space and lean into that emotional anchor for Mark, outie Mark, it was really exciting. It was daunting because I really didn’t want to let anybody down. I knew the fans were super invested in the show. I haven’t seen people this invested in something for such a long time. The attention they pay to every single detail, like zooming into shots and finding little clues, it’s wild.
Talking to theLos Angeles Times,Britt Lower and Adam Scott also shared their reactions toSeveranceseason 2’s ending. Lower likens it to a “love hexagon” and, in her mind, she sees season 2 as the end of Gemma’s all 25 innies. Scott talked about how season 2 was always heading toward Mark’s pivotal choice, and believes the season ended exactly where it should:
Lower: Originally, there was talk that it was going to end with just Mark in the hallway, not having made a decision. That’s my first recollection. It’s so complex. I’ll just add more shapes — I think it’s really like a love hexagon because you have to bring Ms. Casey into the picture too, right? When Dichen crosses that threshold, there’s ostensibly no more Ms. Casey. I can’t imagine she would come back for that consciousness. Plus, you have all of the 23 other consciousnesses that were on the severed floor that Dichen so beautifully lived out. The end of the series really becomes about all of those different consciousnesses having contrasting desires.
Scott: That was thought of always as the end point for the season — is the big choice in the hallway — and it was a matter of figuring out how to get there. There was a general sense of the direction, but as far as the specific puzzle pieces to put into place, that was really figured out after. It just seemed like the logical place to go with innie Mark and outie Mark on this collision course all season. It starts out with their interests aligning and pretty soon their interests start to diverge. But as far as ending the season before he makes a choice, I’m so glad we didn’t end up doing that. I think that the season ends in the exact right place.
What Severance Season 2’s Shocking Cliffhanger Ending Means For The Show
Where Do Mark, Helly, & Gemma Go From Here?
As the three stars discuss,Severanceseason 2’s ending puts Mark, Gemma, and Helly in a difficult dilemma. If innie Mark had left with Gemma, he understands that his outie would likely never return to Lumon, effectively ending his own existence. Helly faces a similar predicament – if she were to leave, Helena Eagan would also likely have no reason to return to the severed floor. In turn, it’s no surprise that Mark and Helly decide that staying inside Lumon together is preferable to effectively ending their own lives, and their relationship.
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Severance season 2 ends in the best way possible, with a shocking finale that provides key answers but sets up many more questions for season 3.
However,it’s unclear exactly what Mark and Helly’s plan is for staying inside Lumon, and how they will survive. With Mark having sabotagedthe Cold Harbor project, Lumon will likely respond harshly, and the Eagan family will likely want to retrieve their heir from the severed floor. In turn, it seems that Mark and Helly’s precarious situation will unravel sooner rather than later. On the other hand, Gemma is technically free, for now, though there’s no guarantee that Lumon won’t come after her again.
It Leaves Many Unanswered Questions
Image via Apple TV+
Like any good cliffhanger ending, theSeveranceseason 2 finale leaves many unanswered questions. This includes whether Mark will ever fully reintegrate, how Lumon faked Gemma’s death, and why Mark and Gemma were chosen for the Cold Harbor experiment. The shocking season 2 cliffhanger, coupled with these unanswered questions, should make for a greatSeveranceseason 3, which was confirmed shortly after the season 2 finale.
