Double Life in Severance? This Creepy Theory Claims Helly Isn't an Innie – Helena Is
This assumption sounds wild, but when you think about it, it makes too much sense.
In Season 2, Episode 9 of Severance several important events happen. Devon and Harmony bring a partially reintegrated Mark to the Damona Birthing Center. Meanwhile, the innie Dylan decides to leave Lumon after Gretchen refuses to marry him.
Throughout the episode, Helly tries to figure out where the hallway to the testing floor is, and in the finale she meets Jame Eagan himself, who tells her, “You tricked me, my Helly.”
Fans Suggest That Helly Might Be an Outie
The fact that Jame said “my Helly” has many fans on edge. While the woman's father may have said this because Helly is an inseparable part of his daughter, some viewers see a more sinister message it addresses.
X user eyesfull_ofstar suggests that this is a hint that Helly is not an innie – Helena is. Wait, wait, we know it sounds crazy, but you will see that this theory actually makes sense.
As we recall, Helena saw the very first prototype of the severance chip. According to the theory, Jame decided to sever his daughter's mind when she was a child. So Helly's childhood memories were erased and Helena appeared – and Helly was trapped in her subconscious until she went down to the severed floor.
Thus, the head of the company would literally have one of the test subjects in front of him and could observe the process of personality splitting himself.
Helena's Strange Behavior Would Be Perfectly Explained by The Fact that She Is an Innie
Also, if Helena behaves like a robot – she is cold and almost emotionless – then Helly is impulsive and lively. Perhaps Jame wanted to suppress Helly's free and independent nature – and replaced it with a blank slate in the form of Helena, from which he molded the obedient Helena like clay.
Also, Helena is clearly devoid of many normal human emotions, such as romantic attachment – yes, this can be explained by her upbringing in the Eagan "sect", but the version that she is actually an innie makes even more sense.
The Swimming Pool & Ring Game Sequences Hint at Helena's End
The ninth episode of the second season began with a scene of Helena swimming in a pool. This scene echoes a conversation between Milchick and Ms. Huang later in the episode.
Milchick announces that Ms. Huang's internship on the severed floor has ended, and she must now make a material sacrifice – smash the ring game in which we see Kier Eagan swimming.
Ms. Huang smashes the game into small pieces, which may be an obvious parallel – Helena will cease to exist. If Helly is indeed an outie, then perhaps she will get rid of her innie forever to finally take her rightful place in her own mind.
This Theory Has Its Plot Holes, But It Makes Too Much Sense
There are holes in this theory – at the beginning of the first season, we were shown the severance procedure being performed on Helena. However, the fact that Helly may be an outie explains too much about the behavior of both versions of the woman to ignore.
We will soon find out if this theory is true – the final tenth episode of season two, titled Cold Harbor, will be released on Apple TV+ on March 21.
