Severance: Is Dylan’s wife Gretchen falling for someone else? Here’s why it’s possible

In Severance, Dylan, played by Zach Cherry, is a dad who’s very into his job but also kind of detached from his family. He’s got a weird work situation, after failing to ever keep a job in the real world. Now, at Lumon, he’s two different people: at work, he’s innie Dylan, and at home, he’s outie Dylan.

It’s tough for him to juggle both lives, especially when it comes to his wife, Gretchen, who’s played by Merritt Wever. She’s the superhero of the family, holding everything together on her own. Some Severance fans on Reddit have noticed that Gretchen might start to feel something for someone else, aka Dylan’s innie! It’s definitely something to think about.

One user @twocatsandaloom noted,

“Even with a severed husband, she carries the mental load.”

Right now, she’s essentially a single mom, dealing with all the usual kid stuff plus what feels like another child. This situation is pretty common even outside of Severance, right? When one person in a relationship feels like they’re the one doing all the adulting while their partner is more like a kid.

When it comes to Gretchen, she seems to really look up to innie Dylan because he’s so into what he does and takes pride in his work. But here’s the thing—does her admiration for him just add some spice to her life, or could it turn into something more, like emotional cheating? It’s a tough call.

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Gretchen’s emotional and mental load shows her marriage with Dylan is strained on Severance

A hot topic in Gretchen and Dylan’s marriage is the mental burden that Gretchen handles. When we talk about “mental load,” we’re referring to all the unseen brainwork that keeps a home running smoothly—like planning everyone’s schedule, keeping track of deadlines, and making sure the kids have what they need. Severance fans could relate to Gretchen’s situation, especially considering Dylan’s lack of involvement.

A Redditor named Efficient_Growth_942 had a widely shared viewpoint, saying,

"It's not about his ability to provide, she is providing, he is providing, he went so far as to severe himself to be able to provide - she's like many other women who lose attraction to their husbands is because their husbands stop acting like a partner, and become just an addtional child to manage...”

This lines up with what we often see in real-life relationships.

Innie Dylan shows some things that outie Dylan doesn’t—like caring, putting in work, and showing he’s grateful.

On Reddit, Efficient_Growth_942 had a good point, saying:

“She is attracted to his kindness, appreciation, and effort—those aren’t gendered traits, just something we should all seek in a healthy partner.”

What this means is that Gretchen isn’t looking for someone new but rather missing the part of Dylan who’s there for her and invested in their life together.

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What could Gretchen’s admiration for innie Dylan on Severance lead to?

A big mystery going into Severance Season 2 is if learning about innie Dylan will cause a rift between Gretchen and the OG Dylan, or maybe it’ll make outie Dylan want to get back in touch with that part of himself. Some fans have this idea that Gretchen could tell Dylan about what his other half’s been up to, which might make him want to reconcile with that side of him.

As Redditor breausephina pointed out,

“After finding out what his innie is like, he makes the decision himself so that he can access that part of himself.”

This situation could lead to Dylan growing as a person, helping him become the kind of partner Gretchen needs. But there’s also the chance that Dylan might get upset if she sees it the wrong way.

Someone else, Realistic_Village184, mentioned,

“Imagine being told by your wife that she likes your two-year-old innie better than you because you're such a failure and she wants you to become more like him.”

That sure will sting, right? It could make Dylan feel even more insecure and push him in the opposite direction of what Severance fans are all hoping for - growing and becoming better.

Severance presents us with a marriage that goes deeper than a typical cheating story. It looks into what makes a good partnership and how men and women fit into those roles today. If Gretchen starts to have feelings for someone else, like innie Dylan or just some new person, it might all come down to whether outie Dylan can be a true partner in their relationship.

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Tune into Apple TV+ because Severance Season 2 is supposed to go further into these complicated love and life situations.