"They’re on to us", says Yellowjackets creator on Hilary Swank’s mystery role

Yellowjackets Season 3 continues to captivate fans and viewers with its gripping narrative, shocking twists, and never-ending psychological drama. The third chapter was released in February 2025, in which the survivors experience a brief period of stability in the wilderness under Natalie’s leadership.

The girls have now established a village, raised ducks for food, and adapted to their surroundings. However, as summer approaches, the group's fragile balance starts to fall apart, and their disagreements soon start to ruin their chances of survival.

In the present, the adults are struggling to cope with Natalie's death, followed by ominous letters injecting fear inside them. One of the most jaw-dropping twists in Yellowjackets Season 3 is the truth about Melissa, who was presumed dead.

Actress Hilary Swank stepped into a mystery role in Yellowjackets Season 3, which is now confirmed to be the adult version of Melissa. However, co-creator Ashley Lyle quickly realized that fans were already figuring out who Swank was playing. Lyle said (via Deadline):

"At first, when we aired the first couple episodes, I felt like, 'They’re on to us.'"

She continues:

"I think that a lot of people are assuming at this point that she is adult Melissa, but I saw things like, she’s an FBI agent, she’s a relative of somebody, and they were all very interesting, good guesses."

Within a few initial episodes, Lyle felt most of the audience had discovered Swank is adult Melissa living under an alias. However, there were also other creative theories floating around.

The co-creator mentioned that some thought the actress took on the role of an FBI agent, while others believed she was a relative. Lyle found all these theories quite interesting but ultimately confirmed that the correct answer was the most obvious one—Swank was indeed adult Melissa.

Keep reading to learn more about the characters in Yellowjackets Season 3.

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Hilary Swank's role as adult Melissa confirmed by Yellowjackets co-creator

Hilary Swank's mysterious role has been widely discussed among fans, and now co-creator Ashley Lyle has also confirmed that she's none other than Melissa, who has been living under a fake name.

The characters returned in Yellowjackets Season 3, Episode 8, "A Normal, Boring Life," which revealed that Melissa faked her death to escape the horrors of her past. However, her secret is out now, and Melissa even confronted Shauna, which led to an intense and violent showdown.

As seen in the episode, their confrontation takes a disturbing turn when Shauna bites a chunk out of Melissa's arm. She unleashes her rage and proves that the brutal instincts they developed in the wilderness never truly disappeared.

Hilary Swank also talked about her role and said:

"The tone that my character takes of 'who's in my closet because I will demolish you,' is a reminder of who this person was and what they went through."

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Also Read: How old is Callie Sadecki in Yellowjackets? Character explored, in depth

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