Shauna Is Almost Like The Wilderness

Warning: There are spoilers ahead for Yellowjackets season 3, episode 4, “12 Angry Girls and 1 Drunk Travis.”

Yellowjackets stars Courtney Eaton and Kevin Alves explain why their characters side with Shauna Shipman (Sophie Nélisse) in season 3, episode 4. The teenage survivors put Coach Ben Scott (Steven Krueger) on trial and require a two-thirds majority to decide if he is guilty or innocent of burning the cabin down. For a while, the vote remains in a deadlock. By the end of Yellowjackets season 3, episode 4, Shauna eventually convinces the majority of her peers, including Lottie Matthews (Eaton) and Travis Martinez (Alves), to vote that Coach Ben is guilty.

During an interview with ScreenRant, Eaton and Alves share their thoughts about the guilty verdict and on how Shauna pressures her peers to vote with her. Eaton explains that even though her character wants to root for Ben, Lottie is drawn to Shauna’s anger and sees it as a manifestation of the wilderness. Alves confirms that Travis does not agree with Coach Ben being guilty, but he changes his vote after he sees Lottie change hers. Check out Eaton and Alves’ comments below:

Courtney Eaton: I love that episode. I think it’s so intricate and detailed. As an actor, it was interesting to go into it knowing what way I was going to swing when I know that Lottie, at her core, would root for Ben.

But I think that the hunger and rage and pain that she sees in Shauna is almost like the wilderness. Because of that addict feeling she has towards it, she has to follow that, and possibly sacrifice Ben to see that through.

Kevin Alves: For Travis, it’s the same thing. But as an actor, it was tough to shoot knowing that he definitely didn’t agree with the decision, and yet he was always going to sway if the group swayed. He was always going to sway if Lottie swayed.

There’s that tricky place he’s in, where he has to think about his life and his will to live, and you’ve got to follow the path of least resistance when you’re in that position in the group. It was tough to actually watch Coach Ben, Steven Krueger, have that whole speech and know it doesn’t matter. It’s still going to end this way.

What This Means For Yellowjackets Season 3

Shauna’s Power Changes The Group’s Dynamics

Coach Ben’s trial is a pivotal turning point for Yellowjackets‘ teenage characters. Even though Natalie Scatorccio (Sophie Thatcher) is the group’s leader, Shauna proves that she is now more powerful by getting the majority to vote with her. Having Lottie’s support is vital to Shauna gaining more power, as seen by how Travis and Akilah (Nia Sondaya) only change their votes after Lottie does so. Lottie crowned Natalie as the leader, and she could do the same with Shauna. As Shauna amasses more power, Natalie is on the verge of losing her authority.

The outcome of the trial is also important for how it puts the teens on a more dangerous trajectory. Instead of saving the life of a man who has only ever tried to help them, they unfairly condemn him. Coach Ben’s agonizing screams in Yellowjackets season 3, episode 5’s trailer confirm that a grim fate awaits him now that he has been deemed guilty. Instead of bringing Coach Ben back into their community and moving forward together, they have allowed anger and fear to guide them.

Coach Ben’s Trial Puts The Teenage Survivors Back On A Dark Path

The brutal turn of events in Yellowjackets‘ past timeline is one of the strongest moments so far in season 3. Under Natalie’s leadership, the group was moving away from cannibalism and other dark choices they made in season 2. Letting Shauna’s anger guide them and deciding Coach Ben is guilty without evidence pushes the group back down a dark path. They are now a step closer to the scene from Yellowjackets‘ pilot episode in which they hunt and eat one of their own after she falls into a pit.

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Yellowjackets

7/10

Release Date

November 14, 2021

Network

Showtime, Paramount+ with Showtime

Showrunner

Ashley Lyle, Bart Nickerson, Jonathan Lisco

Directors

Benjamin Semanoff, Daisy von Scherler Mayer, Deepa Mehta, Eduardo Sánchez, Jeffrey W. Byrd, Liz Garbus, Scott Winant, Eva Sørhaug, Jamie Travis

Writers

Liz Phang, Sarah L. Thompson, Ameni Rozsa