Sydney Cole Alexander's portrayal of Natalie in Severance Season 2 elevates her from a creepy follower to a complex character wrestling with the sinister nature of Lumon.
Apple TV+'s Severance is a show teeming with eccentric characters. From Irving's (John Turturro) gentle and whimsical nature to Ms. Cobel's (Patricia Arquette) piercing gaze, we initially believe the cast can't get much stranger. However, the second season introduces us to a character who's already unsettling in her brief Season 1 appearances: Natalie ( Sydney Cole Alexander ). Episode 3, 'Who is Alive?,' gave us the most Natalie we've seen in a single episode.
We witnessed her delivering Milchick's (Trammel Tillman) 'gift' from the enigmatic and sinister Lumon Board, as well as visiting Devon's (Jen Tullock) husband, Ricken (Michael Chernus), to propose a revised version of his book, The You You Are, specifically for innies. Through Alexander's exceptional performance, Natalie's character provides a fascinatingly complex relationship with the Board, heightening the series' overall tension by forcing her to constantly grapple with both her loyalty and her fear towards them. Alexander's portrayal of Natalie is nothing short of brilliant. Her scene with Milchick and the blackface paintings from Lumon is arguably her best yet. At first, she seems almost unfazed by the Board's gesture; however, Natalie's repeated blinking and strained smile offer the slightest hint that she recognizes the wrongfulness of the situation, reminiscent of Betty Gabriel's performance in Get Out when her facade begins to crack for a fleeting moment. The intense stare exchange between Natalie and Milchick speaks volumes. It's a silent warning that both understand: neither can utter a word while the Board might still be listening. Furthermore, Alexander's performance brilliantly captures the pervasive fear that Lumon instills through its control over its workers. No matter how Natalie feels or what she knows, the fact that she can't fully express herself outside the Board's dictates permeates through the rest of the characters via their innie and outie dynamics. By making the person seemingly closest to the Board the one who is also terrified of them, we sense that no one is truly safe from this malevolent entity. The horror is further amplified by the absence of physical or even verbal abuse inflicted by Lumon. If only the innies are sent to the Break Room, we're left to imagine the potential threats Natalie might have faced in the past.Natalie's inner struggle might be the most agonizing of all the Severance characters. While every Severance character grapples with unique challenges, especially the dynamics between innies and outies, Natalie has to hold all these contradictions within her single soul. Her constant teetering on the edge of a breakdown reveals the immense inner conflict she's enduring. It's reminiscent of Milchick's line in the first episode of Season 2 - that, as a non-severed person, he has to live with the constant knowledge of what he has done to people. This evokes the idea in our own world that, no matter how much we acknowledge the terrible things happening within the system, most of us feel powerless to stop them. Therefore, we exist in the same state as Natalie, wavering between stoicism and hysteria, letting the world burn while we go about our day or breaking down in tears because of the harsh truths we know. Overall, Season 2 of Severance has been captivating, particularly with the increased focus on Natalie. What's even more surprising is the shift in audience opinion that has occurred with her expanded screen time. In Season 1, she was a thoroughly unlikeable character who seemed like a creepy follower of Kier. However, Alexander's performance this season has revealed a far more complex individual who clearly understands the wrongfulness of her actions and words directed at people like Milchick but is powerless to prevent them. In the end, it might be Natalie who is suffering the most profound conflict of conscience at Lumon, and we might not even be aware of it
SEVERANCE APPLE TV SYDNEY COLE ALEXANDER SYDNEY COLE ALEXANDER PERFORMANCE LUMON SEASON 2 CHARACTER ANALYSIS TV REVIEW
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