‘Yellowjackets’ Pit Girl Actress Speaks After Season 3 Finale Reveal

[This story contains MAJOR spoilers from the season three finale of Yellowjackets, “Full Circle.”]

Yellowjackets hinted to viewers with the title of its season three finale that the Showtime survival series was going to bring it all the way back to the beginning. With “Full Circle,” co-creators Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson (the latter who directed the episode) made good on their promise to deliver long-awaited answers when they finally revealed the identity of “Pit Girl” to be Mari.

The very first episode of the series launched a mystery around which teammate would be revealed as “Pit Girl,” a nickname for the last three seasons. Somewhere between the two timelines that the show introduced was a wilderness flash-forward of a girl in a white dress running for her life, barefoot through snow, who is then impaled and eaten by her friends. The scene was filmed with stunt actors. The only Yellowjackets castmember in the initial scene was Samantha Hanratty, who delivered a mysterious smile from Teen Misty.

In their finale conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Lyle and Nickerson, along with co-showrunner Jonathan Lisco, revealed they have always known Pit Girl would be the Yellowjackets soccer player played by Alexa Barajas. That decision was kept secret from the entire cast, who also went down rabbit holes similar to fans about which character would meet such a savage ending.

Barajas tells THR she always had a hunch it would be her, but the news wasn’t confirmed until she had a phone call with the showrunners before filming season three. When it came time to film the episode, the brutal “hunt” for Mari that leads to her death and a cannibalism ritual with the surviving team members included flashes from the original pilot. The showrunners said that back and forth was meant to show viewers the difference between how the adult survivors remember what happened, compared to how the horrific event actually played out.

Below, Barajas opens up about her iconic departure from the series, what it was like to recreate the infamous Pit Girl death scene frame for frame and why she loves the last line Mari ever spoke.

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Take me back. When did you find out that Mari was Pit Girl?

I remember watching the pilot and thinking, “Huh, I have a suspicion that is going to be me.” I was sitting there guessing, just like all of the fans, as to who it was going to be. But I always had a hunch it was going to be me. Then once it was officially confirmed, I had a call with the showrunners and they told me that I was chosen to be Pit Girl.

What gave you a hunch so early on that it was you?

Just watching the pilot and the way she looked. And then how fun it was to hate Mari, I was like, “Oh yeah, I think this is a set up!” I wasn’t told for a while, but I did have a hunch. As soon as I knew about this phone call, I was like, “I think I know exactly what’s coming.” I’m just so happy that the writers trusted me to play Mari. They were very nice and told me how happy they are with all these seasons and how full of a character Mari has become, which makes me so happy. We just got to feel excited to finally get to film this very highly anticipated scene.

I know the entire cast has speculated and was as invested as the fans in the Pit Girl mystery. I’ve been told that the pink converse sneakers (that we now know are worn by Liv Hewson’s Van) were a big talking point on set whenever they showed up in wardrobe. How much were you all talking about Pit Girl on set?

We used to discuss it so much in the beginning, because we were still slowly getting answers. The sneakers are so funny, because every time we would have them in our wardrobe, we would all send pictures and be like, “I’m wearing them today!” They were actually super comfortable, so I loved wearing the pink sneakers!

Then as as soon as it was winter in the second season, we were wondering if we were going to find out then. How do we get there? Does it happen during that hunt? And then, we didn’t. So then this season it was like, “Okay, when are we getting to winter? Because it’s going to happen, right?” And sure enough, this time we got to winter and we finally got to find out.

Did you share your suspicions with your co-stars?

I think so. A lot of us thought it was me. Some people thought it was Sarah [Desjardins, who plays Shauna’s daughter Callie], somehow time jumping. But I think most of the fingers were pointing in my direction. I mean brown hair, there could only be so many of us!

Fans early on in Reddit threads also guessed Mari, but season three’s introduction of Hanna (Ashley Sutton) was a good red herring. Are you impressed with the fans and how much they dive into the show?

Oh yes, 100 percent. They’re so creative with the things they come up with. I really hope now that they have the scene and this full-circle moment that they’re satisfied with how we made our way back to the pilot. It’s so fun to follow along. There were two extremes. There’s some people who really wanted Mari to be Pit Girl, and then there were people who were like, “No, please, anything but that!” I just hope now that it did happen and that they have their answer that there will be satisfaction for both sides, which I’m really excited to see.

In episode three of this season, Mari gave a speech to Coach Ben (Steven Krueger) about how two realities can coexist. I feel like that’s the thesis of the show. As you were filming, how did knowing what happens in the end impact how you played Mari?

What’s really cool is that now that her story does come to an end, it’s nice that we got to know her a bit better. I think that makes losing her that much more impactful. Before, Mari had this hard shell and only knew how to push back. Now when she’s been put in such a vulnerable position this season, she was able to, for example, with Coach Ben, slowly shed those outside layers and show a bit more of her actual self, even though it didn’t last for too long. It’s something that I definitely hold on to. Those scenes were some of my favorite ones to film. To get real with Mari was fun. But I also do love her zingers!

What do you think she was talking about in that episode? Do you think it’s about what people tell themselves to accept what they’ve done, considering the rest of them have been living with what they did to Mari for their whole lives?

I think there’s some of that, for sure. I think she was almost aware that she was walking this tight line and that if she tipped too much on one side or the other, it could end badly. I think she was just always trying to balance those two realities, and unfortunately it tipped a little too much to one side.

There’s a theme of borrowed time on this show, where people who escape death don’t necessarily escape it a second time or a third time. Mari did escape from this pit before, with Coach. Was there no way she could avoid it a second time?

She survived the pit once but this time it was prepared, I guess, even though it wasn’t meant to kill her [Travis prepared it to kill Lottie]. There was no way she was going to survive it a second time.

What was it like when you actually went to wardrobe and put on the iconic outfit?

It was so fun to wear the dress because it’s like, “Wow, we’re here. It’s happening.” Once I read the script, I got to really collaborate with the hair and wardrobe teams about, maybe we can slowly reveal it through the episode rather than right away as soon as you see her pick the card. Because maybe you’re going, “No, no. It’s not her.” Later when you see her making the scarecrow, the jacket was intentionally zipped all the way up so that when you see me zip it down, you see the dress underneath. My hair was up so that I don’t look exactly the way you’re expecting Pit Girl to look. Then once the jacket comes off, I worked out with hair how we could do a messy bun so her hair could come down easily. Then I’m fully in Pit Girl attire and you realize, “Oh no, it’s happening!” It was really fun to come up with those beats.

I know in the pilot, Samantha was the only actor in the Pit Girl scenes. What was it like recreating the scene frame-for-frame for this finale?

I really tried to match when she’s in the pit to the original, in the way her mannerisms were closer to the end so that you hopefully do get this this full-circle moment with Mari. The episode is intercutting between some of the pilot footage and some of our new footage, hopefully it blends seamlessly. The last person I get to see before going into the pit is Lottie [Courtney Eaton], and I love the last line that Mari ever says. I love that it’s the last line you ever see me say on screen as Mari: “Oh my god, fuck off!” I think that really sums her up as a character. (Laughs)

The scene of your body hanging from a tree is from the pilot. But you did film being dragged through the snow, filling in the parts that we saw initially. Who was dragging you in that scene?

Technically it was stunts! My final scene of actual filming was the picking of the card. And that was so special because we were all there for that, so it really felt like an official wrap up with the show. They still had more scenes to go, but I was done. So we did take some time to all say some kind words. Now I’ve totally blacked out what I even said! But I am just so honored to be Pit Girl. I’m so happy I get to be such a big part of the lore and the history that’s connected with Yellowjackets. I’m really happy about it all.

Did you get a funeral or death party in the end?

We had like a death dinner (laughs) more than a death party, because I think at that point in the season I was exhausted, and everyone else was exhausted, so it was more of a nice dinner sendoff celebration of all of our accomplishments, along with me leaving.

It is brutal to see how they turn on her. Some people fight it, but in the end, they all give in. What was it like when you saw and got to film how savage they are? What do you make of this turning point?

I hope that it haunts them all for the rest of their lives! This season specifically is where you see them not hunting necessarily for survival, but almost for sport. Now you see why they don’t want to go back and, now that there is the option to go back, you understand why some of them wouldn’t want to. And that the life that they created out there, some prefer over their life back home. Some of them definitely enjoyed what happened, and I think others are too suppressed to do anything about it. So I wouldn’t be surprised if it happened again.

There were a lot of deaths this season. When you think of Adult Lottie (Simone Kessell), Adult Van (Lauren Ambrose), Coach Ben (Steven Krueger) — and Adult Nat (Juliette Lewis) from last season — a lot of the dead characters were ones who didn’t want to or who wouldn’t have hunted Mari. What do you make of the people who perhaps are less deserved still being among the living?

It just makes for a way more interesting show that way! The people who were trying to move on with their lives put their guard down and all those who didn’t kept going. So it was almost like, unless you kept your walls up, your death is probably on the horizon.

Mari was imagining a slushee when they dreaming of home. What do you imagine Mari would have been like if she had made it out?

Mari would have loved the attention that everyone got as soon as they got back. She would have milked it for all it was worth. You know how everyone in the future avoids saying that they were a Yellowjacket? Mari would wear a shirt that said like, “I survived the plane crash.” (Laughs) I think she would have become a personality in some way.

If you had made it to adulthood, who would be your dream casting to play her?

Olivia Munn would have been a dream of mine, if she could have gotten to play older Mari.

What will you miss most and where are you in your mourning process of leaving Yellowjackets?

Man, I’ll miss going to work every day with everyone, but I’m also really excited for what’s next. I am very fulfilled with these three seasons. I’ll miss Mari’s funny one liners. The writers did such a good job with those and that was so much fun to play. There is one lingering question I have. What happened to Mari’s Fruit by the Foot? We hear about this in the pilot and we never got that answer, so this full circle is still missing one little piece that I would like to find out!

Will there be more horror in your future, or are you looking for a change of page?

Oh, I’d love a rom-com. I love comedy. I’d love to do something in that world, or I love the idea of action. I did get this really cool opportunity to star and EP this indie feature Lucky Weekend and, funny enough, the director is Kevin Alves! Who plays Travis on Yellowjackets. I’m really excited. It’s very different from Yellowjackets, so it’s fun to have a different character to get to play.

Any final words as Pit Girl?

Oh my god, fuck off!

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Yellowjackets season three is now streaming on Paramount+ With Showtime, with a linear airing Sunday at 8 p.m. on Showtime. Follow along with all of THR‘s season three coverage and finale interviews, including our finale postmortem with showrunners Ashley Lyle, Bart Nickerson and Jonathan Lisco.