Juliette Lewis, Christina Ricci star in cannibal survival epic Yellowjackets

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

JENNIFER'S BODY director Karyn Kusama is set to helm the pilot episode of a potential series called Yellowjackets for Showtime, and she has assembled an awesome cast for this show, with Juliette Lewis and Christina Ricci signed on to star as series regulars.

Created and written by showrunners Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson, Yellowjackets is described as "equal parts survival epic, horror story, and coming-of-age drama." The story centers on 

a team of wildly talented high school girls soccer players who become the (un)lucky survivors of a plane crash deep in the Ontario wilderness. The series will chronicle their descent from a complicated but thriving team to warring, cannibalistic clans, while also tracking the lives they’ve attempted to piece back together nearly 25 years later, proving that the past is never really past and what began out in the wilderness is far from over.

Lewis will be playing the present day version of a character named Natalie, with Sophie Thatcher playing the teenage Natalie. "Despite her natural talent, Natalie's punk rock spirit and habit of finding trouble make her the unlikeliest member of the team. As an adult, Natalie struggles to quiet the demons that still haunt her from her time in the wilderness."

Ricci and Sammi Hanratty play the present and teenage versions of Misty, "the Yellowjackets' equipment manager. Eager to please and easy to overlook, Misty's abundance of team spirit belies a hidden dark side."

Also in the cast are Ella Purnell, Sophie Nélisse, Steven Krueger, Amy Okuda, Melanie Lynskey, Tawny Cypress, and Jasmin Savoy Brown. 

Purnell's character is Jackie, "the Yellowjackets' magnetically charismatic, effortlessly popular, occasionally entitled team captain." 

Lynskey and Nélisse are the present and teen versions of a character named Shauna. "25 years later, Shauna is on a mission to reclaim her agency — her life — while doing everything in her power to keep her darkest secrets safe." 

Krueger will be playing Ben Scott, "the assistant coach and the object of many an unrequited crush." 

Okuda is Cat Wheeler, "a history teacher recruited to bolster the female presence on the coaching staff, despite knowing literally nothing about soccer." 

Cypress and Brown are both playing the character Taissa, "the star player on the Yellowjackets squad; now, 25 years later, her political ambitions threaten to derail the survivors’ pact of secrecy."

Kusama, Lyle, and Nickerson are executive producing Yellowjackets with Drew Comins of Creative Engine. The show is a co-production between Showtime and eOne.

In addition to JENNIFER'S BODY, Kusama's directing credits include GIRLFIGHT, AEON FLUX, THE INVITATION, the Nicole Kidman film DESTROYER, and a segment of the horror anthology XX.