Britt Lower star ‘quits’ in Helly’s shocking revelation at the end of the season

Fromantically the moment she wakes up on that conference table in the first scene of the critically acclaimed Apple TV+ Quit, the character of Helly R. became an object of profound fascination for the show’s obsessive fans. In turn, the actress who played her jumped off the screen facing much more seasoned actors such as John Turturro, Christopher Walken, Patricia Arquette and her co-star, Adam Scott.

On the eve of Quit ‘season finale, which begins streaming today and contains both big revelations and nasty forerunners, Britt Lower told The Daily Beast that landing the Helly season ahead of “the bigger names” was a moment of “kneel and gratitude. Not only that, it permanently changed the trajectory of a career that consisted mostly of small but memorable roles on comedies like Man looking for woman, Normaland High maintenance.

Lower also shared her reaction to the huge reveal of her character “Outie” as her character “Innie” — to use the show’s signature parlance — opening the final episode. These are spoilers for anyone who wants to stay in the dark.

When “Innie” Helly “wakes up” to a world beyond the mysterious underground office where she and her colleagues the Macrodata Refiner are working tirelessly – can’t remember who they are when they’re not. at work and vice versa, thanks to the voluntary severance procedure — she quickly learns that her real name is Helena Egan, the heir to the founder of Lumon as the god Kier Egan. With a glass of champagne in hand, she is attending an elaborate gala to celebrate her decision to demonstrate how safe it is to leave her job by going through it herself and preparing to go on stage and have a big speech at any time.

At the end of the gripping finale, directed by Ben Stiller, in which Adam Scott’s “Innie” character Mark S. also learns that his wife is alive and working for Lumon as well as healthcare consultant Miss Casey, Helly basically decided to take down her own company when it was her turn to speak.

It’s an episode that seems to pose as many questions as it answers. And as Lower warned before our interview began, “I have to say first, I don’t know a lot of the secrets people want me to know.

“I purposely keep myself in the dark about a lot of things,” she added. “As an actor, it seems that Helly doesn’t know exactly what goats or numbers are for. In fact, that’s what motivated me to get intensely curious about what’s going on and look for clues myself. So I get frustrated in the dark, as do the audience.”

Only after we talked did Apple TV+ officially renew Quit for the second season. So when I suggested to Lower that a delivery announcement would be the only way to appease some of the show’s most famous fans, who might have been a little upset about the season one ending, She joked, “That would also be very soothing for me. ”

She seemed to be feeling much better when I checked in for the weekend, telling me, “I’m so happy, I’ll have an extended musical dance experience in the near future!”

Below is an edited and condensed version of our spoiler-filled conversation.

Assuming you knew from the start that Helly was the real person on the outside, how has that affected your performance?

I approach her duality as essence versus nurture, or ego versus nature. So they have qualities that they share are innate. They are all strong-willed, brave and strong. When they love someone, they will do anything for that person. And I think of Helly on the inside as some sort of unresolved, raw teenage rage, maybe a part of her on the outside that she can never fully express.

On the inside she is quite rebellious.

Yes, and it begs the question, who are we at the core? Do the stories and experiences we live through throughout our lives override our innate nature or are they lying dormant within us? And something like severance comes along and is the key to it all.

When I re-watch the entire season for the second time, it makes me wonder if Helena’s status as this rich, powerful woman has such an effect on Helly’s confidence and ambition. on the inside, especially compared to her colleagues, who seem more willing to go with everything.

Well, she definitely comes from a very special upbringing that most of us don’t have an insight into, myself included. I don’t come from a Johnson & Johnson type of family. On the surface, Helly is a person who probably doesn’t get to say “no” very often.

It’s correct. And that blew into this new life she had as an Innie. And she doesn’t know who she really is until she “wakes up” at this gala and has to figure it out. I loved that scene so much as we were watching you realize right now who you are. How does it feel to shoot that scene in the finale, where you “pop” with champagne in hand and at this posh gala?

Ben Stiller joked that seeing multiple images of himself blown up on giant cubes is an actor’s greatest nightmare or worst. And it could be more towards the latter for me. Not that the picture isn’t pretty. They’re black and white and they have this kind of nostalgia, and there’s something beautiful and exciting about seeing pictures of the work we’ve done together all year. At the same time, it is very scary. I think something like my 54 images have spread all over space. It’s like being in a wild fun house. And, as for Helly, apparently, she says in episode eight, “We basically knew that my Outie was a jerk.” But in her wildest nightmares, she never thought she would be who she really is. So it’s very scary.

And then she has to figure out what to do and whether to say it or not, which she will eventually do. That moment when she says to Cobel, Patricia Arquette’s character, “I’m going to kill your company,” and she replies, “It’s your company,” it’s a mind trip. So what did you think of her decision to take down her own company?

The moment when she looked at herself in the mirror became a real thought to herself. And I think it was a moment for me, as an actress, when Helly was in charge of both sides of her. She’s a character, once she makes a decision, she’s done with it. But she is bound to this family and it is her worst nightmare.

Another scene from an earlier episode that was tense and dark is when Helly tries to hang herself and then survives and is brought back by someone we know as Helena. Can you tell about the moment when Helly woke up inside, after she knew she just tried to hang herself, and now she knows she’s been brought back?

It is clear that we have sympathy for Innie Helly in every decision she makes. We were with her from the very beginning. We know what drove everything she did. We don’t really know what drives Helena on the outside, except that now we know she’s part of the Egan family. But we don’t know the complex human reasons that are driving that. And so is Helly. She doesn’t understand it. You are essentially watching a person waging war against himself. And not being able to get over your other side that you don’t understand is downright devastating.

Unlike Adam Scott, who gets to play both sides — Innie Mark and Outie Mark — roughly equally throughout the series, we get glimpses of you as your Outie character. There is a scene with Milchick at the beginning which is very short. And then there are the tapes that Helena records for Helly, including the part where she says, basically, “You’re not human,” which is very disturbing. Since you only had very little chance to play Helly’s outie, how did you do those scenes?

Well, Outie Helly’s pre-recorded elements are natural. So there is a feeling that Helly knows she is being watched not only alone but also by others. And I think that affects the way she behaves. It was a tough scene to shoot, to be honest, because I didn’t want to tell Helly that she wasn’t human. But the way for me is, we say things to ourselves in our heads that we would say to anyone else on this planet. I can’t say all the reasons why Outie Helly behaves the way she does, but I think we give ourselves a chance to use a tougher love for ourselves than anyone else. . And it’s sad.

Yes itself. Zooming in a bit, this is like your most important role by far in many ways. What does it mean for you to have the opportunity to participate in this program?

This is the moment of kneeling and gratitude when we get the call that I must be Helly. I have never read a more dynamic, honest character. I just love being in her shoes. She taught me a lot about how I can speak for myself in my personal life and care a little bit about what other people think of me. Because Helly doesn’t have a filter.

Do you like to transmit that energy?

Total. I was a good kid growing up. I never broke any rules. So it’s nice to shake off some of that rebellious energy and tap into it.

How was the audition process?

I actually made my own duct tape in my bathroom and there are still stone marks on the door.

That first scene?

That was the first scene I tried to get through, and that self-recording is what got me called back by Adam and Ben. The whole audition process was really cozy and cooperative and thoughtful, but honestly I don’t think in a million years I’ll be getting this role. It’s just like a long shot. So I feel very fortunate that I have aroused in them something like Helly.

Do you know it all? online theory people trying to figure out what’s really going on at Lumon? That’s not really the point of the show in my opinion, but how do you feel about it?

I think our fans are amazing and really fun. The fan art I’m seeing popping up on Twitter and Instagram brings me great joy. I’ve never been through a show like this where there’s this kind of interaction and it’s really nice to see people so passionate about the world [writer] Dan Erickson has built as we are.

Looking forward, is there anything you want for Helly in season two?

Oh man, I hope she gets dressed normally. The outfits are beautiful and inspiring, but just for Helly’s sake, I hope she tries on pajamas one day.

For more, listen to ‘Severance’ star Adam Scott on The Last Laugh podcast.