“Yellowjackets” Gore was inspired by Tony Soprano

Long live the legacy of Tony Soprano.

The titular mob boss from HBO’s “The Sopranos” has influenced everything from “Better Call Saul” to “Avatar: The Way of Water,” but the particular breed of beloved antihero that Tony embodies is a direct inspiration for “Yellowjackets to “. ” Season 2.

Creators and showrunners Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson discussed how the humanization of the cannibalism, murder, and trauma suffered by the core characters of “Yellowjackets,” played by Melanie Lynskey, Tawny Cypress, Christina Ricci, and Juliette Lewis, was rooted in Tony.

“Tony Soprano is an absolute monster – but because he’s drawn so well, you understand him. That’s what we strive for,” Lyle said The Hollywood Reporter. – We talk about what might be too far, but it’s less about the popularity of the characters, and more about the type of story. We never want to be shocking and salivating for sheer joy.”

Co-host Jonathan Lisco teased similarly Entertainment Weekly that cannibalism is only the “tip of the iceberg” of the horrors committed by the surviving football team.

“If we do our job right, eating a human won’t be the saddest thing these young women do in the wild,” Lisco said. “This is just the tip of the iceberg. If Season 1 was all about our teenage characters learning to adapt to their harsh environment, Season 2 is where it all just explodes. Each of them makes decisions they never dreamed of. And as we fast-forward 25 years, we’ll see those terrible acts come to the surface, and I’d say they’ve irrevocably changed the course of their lives.

Cypress also confirmed that the cannibal series doesn’t cross certain moral lines … despite landing some BFFs at a BBQ or showing the Antler Queen hunting down a teammate for a sacrificial meal.

“They’re not going to eat the baby,” Cypress confirmed to Shauna’s (Sophie Nélisse) child, a nod to Taissa’s character’s gripping turn in the Season 1 finale. “But to behead the dogs? Absolutely.”

Season 2 also introduces adult versions of Van (Lauren Ambrose) and Lottie (Simone Kessell). For all the details on ‘Yellowjackets’ Season 2, click here.

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