“Needed an actress of gravity”: Yellowjackets creators reveal why they cast Hilary Swank in Season 3

Yellowjackets fans were teased with an appearance by Oscar and Golden Globe Award-winning actress Hilary Swank in the trailer, who was cast in Season 3.

While fans speculated who Swank would play in the thriller series' upcoming chapter, Episode 8 revealed Swank as the adult Melissa, played by actress Jenna Burgess in the 1990s timeline.

In a recent interview with Collider, producer Drew Comins discussed the casting process for Melissa and why they felt that Swank would fit the role perfectly. Comins noted:

"We felt we needed an actress of gravity. Coming into a show in Season 3 is a really hard thing to do''

He added:

''It required someone who came to play and had that incredible talent and wasn't going to get eaten alive, pun intended, by the other women. This was someone who, quite obviously, stands her ground and can come into the character with a predisposition to make that character a fearsome competitor and a fearsome rival to the others.''

Considering the past and present timeline events, the rift between Shauna and Melissa was increasing. It was about time for the makers to debut Melissa's adult version in the show.

Swank finally debuted as Melissa in Yellowjackets Season 3, and Episode 8 saw her eventual face-off with Shauna, which will be crucial for the show's future,

More on Swank's casting as adult Melissa in Yellowjackets Season 3 in our story.

Hilary Swank guest-starred as adult Melissa in Yellowjackets Season 3

Complete with the acting chops of artists like Melanie Lynskey, Christina Ricci, Tawny Cypress, Juliette Lewis and many more, Yellowjackets added American actress Hilary Swank in Season 3.

Swank is famous for her roles in award-winning projects such as Boys Don't Cry, Million Dollar Baby, P.S. I Love You, Iron Jawed Angels, and The Resident.

While Yellowjackets is well into its Season 3 run, Swank had a difficult job to follow, considering she entered the thriller series well into the third season. But as discussed by Comins, Swank really understood the character well, especially from her past timeline's adventures (via Collider):

"What I thought was interesting was she really wanted to understand the arc of the younger version of her character, and not just from a standpoint of what was on the surface, but what was motivating the character in the minds of the writers''

He added:

''...it was an interesting approach to understand specifically as it relates to the relationship with Shauna, kind of what was motivating their dynamic in the past so that she can find ways to bring it into their dynamic in the present."

Also Read: Yellowjackets Season 3 Episode 9: Release date news