‘Yellowjackets’ Star Simone Kessell Unpacks Episode 4’s Sh/o/cking Cliffhanger and Why She ‘Felt It Was Premature’

Who killed Lottie Matthews?

In a shocking turn of events, Episode 4 of “Yellowjackets” ends in the present day, with adult Lottie, played by Simone Kessell, dead at the bottom of the stairs.

Earlier in Season 3, Lottie showed up at Shauna’s (Melanie Lynskey) door, fresh out of the psych ward, with luggage in hand. She had nowhere to go, and Shauna reluctantly let her stay. With a dinner to go to, Shauna and Jeff (Warren Kole) didn’t want to leave Lottie alone with their teen daughter Callie (Sarah Desjardins), so Shauna she pleaded with Misty (Christina Ricci) to come and play babysitter. Shauna didn’t want Lottie spilling any secrets about what happened in the wilderness.

Callie and Lottie bond, though, and then they go on a shoplifting spree. Lottie also used this opportunity to give Callie Jackie’s (Ella Purnell) heart necklace. When Shauna spotted the necklace on Callie, she ripped it off, and kicked Lottie out.

Later, Lottie practices apologizing in the mirror — and that’s the last time she’s seen before her untimely death, which Misty discovers while browsing Citizen Detective.

The only person currently mad at Lottie is Shauna, who was last seen yelling at her to “Get the fuck out of my house!” While the mystery of who killed Lottie will inevitably unfold over the rest of the season, Kessell says she was devastated to learn the fate of her character.

During the interview with Variety, Kessell picks at a protein combo of fish and chicken and a chopped salad. She’s avoiding real carbs, because she’s wearing a revealing dress ahead of the season premiere. Kessell says that after that Season 2 finale, when Lottie is carted off to the psychiatric hospital, she had hopes for her character — she envisioned Lottie channeling a little bit of Randle Patrick McMurphy played by Jack Nicholson in “One Flew Over’s the Cuckoo’s Nest” this season. “That’s a dream for actors,” Kessell says, “and I would have shaved my head.”

But that was not meant to be.

After the labor strikes ended in November 2023, Kessell got a call that Lottie would be coming back to “Yellowjackets” — but for only four episodes. Her dream of exploring Lottie in a psych ward was just that, since the creative team had other plans for how the character’s present day storyline would play out.

Here, Kessell talks about learning about her fate, why Lottie was drawn to Callie — and what’s next for her.

Did they tell you how she was going to die?

It was the first thing I asked, and they [showrunners Jonathan Lisco, Bart Nickerson and Ashley Lyle] were reluctant to tell me. I said, “Just tell me,” because I had nothing to lose.

I was pretty brokenhearted, because it felt like it had come to an end just when I felt Lottie was coming into her own. I was excited that Season 3 would take her somewhere interesting, and unfortunately, they just decided that storyline was no longer. I guess Lottie’s death then serves as an investigation for Misty to be Citizen Detective, and discover how Lottie passes, what happened — and everyone’s a suspect.

Going back to Season 1, there was this “Who is Lottie Matthews?” setup, and you felt she was going to be important, and she kind of was. But we get to this season and this episode, and she as an adult has evaporated, and that storyline wasn’t explored. How do you feel about that?

I don’t know what happened in that writers’ room, or whether they decided that they wanted to bring in a fresh character, or just have the three main girls. I don’t know. I think that’s a question for Jonathan, Ashley and Bart. As an actor, you always think, “Was it something I did? Was it my performance? Could I have done it differently?”

I just felt it was premature because I wanted to see — and I know that the fans and the supporters of the show did too — where Lottie was going. So to have that just cut off didn’t feel good.

You had some great moments, particularly the scenes with Callie. What is going on with Lottie and Callie?

Lottie sees something in Callie that takes her back to the wilderness. She sees that she is Shauna’s daughter and that the boy died in Season 2 — so maybe it’s Callie who is the Chosen One. There’s something intriguing to Lottie about Callie in her heightened, euphoric mental health way.

If I had to describe Lottie, she does have a personality disorder. The way I play her now is that she’s very childlike. In the work that I’ve done on people with personality disorders, I’ve seen that they can turn on a dime. They go from, “Yes, let’s do that” to “Fuck you!” — and it’s terrifying when you’re in that company. I have a relative who has that, and that’s so interesting as a character choice. It didn’t interest me to play her spacey, looking through things, and just straight out of a psych ward. I took her to the other extreme. I played Lottie very high on life, and Callie is like this wonderful distraction, and she thinks maybe it’s a way to get back at Shauna. But I think ultimately, Callie reminds her of their youth in the wilderness, and she’s drawn to that.

In the present timeline, Lottie gives Callie the heart necklace that was once worn by Jackie, and tells Shauna, “It never meant what you thought it meant.” Was that genuine?

The relationship with Callie is Lottie testing to see if Callie is the chosen one. The daughter of that place.

I thought the sleepover scenes were so much fun. What was it like to play that out with Misty and Callie?

It was fun. We were meant to be painting our nails and our toes, and I have the worst toes on the planet. So I said, “Perhaps if it was ‘The Hobbit,’ I’d be fine, but I don’t want to be painting my toenails on camera.” Christina was like, “I don’t want to paint my toenails either,” so we went with the animal face masks.

Going back to Lottie’s return, when she shows up at Shauna’s door, did you factor in what happened to her in that time?

I did — where has she been? It was interesting, because the writers didn’t have any answers for me. Lottie has been locked up, and she’s been in a psych ward. I liked turning up at the door: When Lottie’s at the door, what spooky shit does she bring with her?

How has Lottie changed this season?

She’s quite different. She’s still got all the bells and whistles, but she’s not the spiritual guru in her power. I played her more vulnerable and childlike, and we don’t know what she’s really doing. She’s moved in, she’s cooking and dancing and getting her hair braided.

Well, that scene when Shauna rages on her, and tells her to get out was interesting. What was it like filming that?

When we filmed that scene, I was chopping and I had a knife in my hand. This wasn’t on the page, but I just looked at Melanie as I just held the knife. Melanie and I both had this electric moment where we held each other’s stare eyes and then she started shaking. I started shaking, and I put the knife down. I undid my apron, and I was out. After the scene, we both burst into tears because neither of us knew what had passed through us, and that scene was so powerful. We were vibrating on a whole different level. Afterwards, they called cut and Melanie just hugged me, and I hugged her. They trimmed that scene, but it was one of those magic and rare moments as an actor that are far and few between.

What is happening to Shauna? Is she completely unhinged now?

Melanie does that beautifully, unraveling through rage. Melanie is not that person. She’s very contained. So seeing that is just wonderful.

Is this the last we’ll see of Lottie?

We do see what happened to Lottie in Episode 10. We find out what happened to her, and how she died.

What is next for you?

I was fortunate enough to work on “The Last Frontier” with Jason Clarke, and it’s set in Alaska. It’s out in October on Apple TV+. It’s a John Grisham-type thriller. I play a nurse and a mother. At the core of it is the relationship with the husband and wife — and what actually happens and what has happened — and it unravels and unfolds, and you’re sucked in.

In your downtime, you play pickleball. You’ve gone from the Antler Queen to pickleball queen. How did that happen?

Now Lottie is dead, I have time. I had to become a pickleball queen. I became addicted to a sport that was very easy for me to travel and play. So wherever I go, I look up courts, and you just have to have a paddle and shoes. When I was in Vancouver, I’d get on an E-bike and play men all morning and smack the fuck out of it, and then I’d go and film “Yellowjackets.” When I was in Monterey filming “The Last Frontier,” I joined a racquet club and played. When I went back to Australia, I got a sponsorship, and I won the Australian Open. I now play mixed doubles, and am the captain of the major pickleball League.