Spoilers forward for Severance Season 2, which will be streamed with an Apple TV+ subscription.
It’s now been over a month for the reason that Severance Season 2 finale hit the 2025 TV schedule, and that heartbreaking last scene between Gemma, Mark and Helly has been dwelling rent-free in my head. I do know I’m not alone, as a result of followers proceed to crank out theories about what we’ve witnessed and what’s to return in Severance Season 3. It seems government producer Ben Stiller is listening (as is Lumon!), and he gave the loveliest rationalization for why he’s joined the discourse.
It seems Ben Stiller — who has directed greater than half of the Severance episodes throughout two seasons — actually enjoys leaping on social media to speak Season 2’s huge goat reveal and weigh in on the place the sprawling story goes. That’s not precisely widespread amongst TV creatives, however as Stiller advised Selection:
I discover it, truly, actually inspiring to be interacting with the viewers as a result of we by no means had that, my technology rising up. When someone doesn’t like one thing, I’ll [still] commute with them typically and I discover that enjoyable, too, as a result of normally when you begin speaking to someone or interacting, one thing optimistic can come out of it. It’s additionally sort of enjoyable. And on the finish of the day, I don’t actually take it that critically.
There truthfully might not be a more healthy option to view the Web than how Ben Stiller does, and I say we must always all formally attempt to be extra like him. The Tropic Thunder star isn’t simply listening to the followers who agree with every part he does and wish to reward him. He listens to folks with a distinct view and tries to know why they don’t like one thing.
He additionally doesn’t take it that critically (not all that stunning, coming from the man who wrote, directed and starred in Zoolander). Even the disagreements are one thing he mentioned he finds “enjoyable,” and he doubtless takes away the attitude of a distinct nook of Severance’s viewers.
Ben Stiller makes a great level that this type of fan interplay wasn’t attainable earlier than social media. There was watercooler speak, in fact, however the Web has opened up fan reactions in order that showrunners have immediate entry to trustworthy suggestions. What theories are being debated? What aspect characters are viewers considering? Which tales are sending Redditors down the deepest rabbit holes?
Why shouldn’t Ben Stiller and others make the most of this as a option to higher perceive the very people who find themselves ingesting their media? Now, I’m not saying he ought to let that affect the product. Severance has had some good minds behind it — together with creator Dan Erickson — and Season 3 will characteristic some huge inventive adjustments, however understanding what your viewers is speaking about can’t be a nasty factor.
Helly-related fan theories had been significantly prevalent in Season 2, together with that huge ORTBO episode, and “Chikhai Bardo” — presumably one of many darkest episodes of tv ever — just about introduced all frivolous jokes about scary numbers to a halt after we realized all of it simply meant Gemma was being tortured.
Perhaps Ben Stiller can shoot me a DM and inform me how I’m alleged to snort at Dylan’s jokes with out enthusiastic about whether or not or not he’s a nasty dad.
All kidding apart, I feel it’s actually cool that Ben Stiller cares sufficient about Severance and its followers to leap into the sometimes-scary world of social media to debate the present. Now let’s get to Season 3 already!