Melanie Lynskey is gearing up for the second season of Yellowjackets. She’s also in full Emmy mode as one of the frontrunners for her role as Shauna. Melanie was interviewed by Danielle Brooks for InStyle magazine for the campaign. The editorial is really fun, they put Melanie in these fluffy dresses that look your fun aunt’s lounging robes. But then they showed her in the fabulous Valentino cape posted below and I would’ve never taken it off. The interview is sweet too. The lead in talks about how everyone in Hollywood says Melanie is so nice and now everyone at InStyle thinks so too. Danielle and Melanie worked together in 2018’s Sadie so the interview was very familiar and relaxed. Melanie admitted she loves going to psychics, well, one in particular. And that this psychic predicted the success of Yellowjackets and that Melanie’s career would enter a new sphere.
A psychic predicted Yellowjackets success: This sounds so crazy, but I talked to a psychic, who I love, and she told me this was gonna happen. It had been months and months since we shot the [Yellowjackets] pilot, and she said, ‘That show’s gonna get picked up and it’s gonna be really big, and you’re gonna enter into a time in your career that you thought, if this didn’t happen when you were 25, it was never going to happen. It’s about to happen. I was like, I just don’t think that’s possible. Thank you so much, like, she can’t always be right.
On body image: Sometimes, my husband will tweet things about thinking I look hot or whatever and a lot of people like it, and I said to him, ‘Isn’t it funny that if I was a Victoria’s Secret model and you tweeted the exact same thing, people would not respond the way that they do?’ People get excited because I look like I look, and my husband, he’s like a cute, young actor, but I am aware that some of the responses to him are like, ‘Good for you.’ It’s like, well, he got together with me because he found me attractive. It’s not like he’s throwing himself on the sword for the rest of mankind. And also — he had competition.
She still struggles: It’s such a struggle, always. I feel like I have two voices in my head. One of them is coming from my heart and my soul and what I know is right, and it’s telling me, You’re perfectly fine. And then the other voice is just this little voice that’s always been there that’s like, What are you thinking? Thinking your body’s OK. It’s not OK. You have to change it, like, What are you thinking, doing a love scene? What are you thinking, being one of the leads of a show?
It’s just reinforced so much culturally that there’s a different kind of body that is, you know, popular. And so it’s a struggle within myself to just say, I feel beautiful. My husband thinks I’m beautiful. And also we look like the majority of women in the world. We’re healthy, you know? I think there’s this weird shaming of anybody who’s not, like, a size 2, and I’m just over it.
All women are real women: It’s funny. It’s really kind when people are like, “Well, you had a baby and your body went through something … ” [But] there are a lot of women who haven’t given birth or can’t give birth or don’t want to give birth, and their bodies should also be fine. It shouldn’t just be like, “Well, now, you’re a mother, so your body’s allowed to not be so tiny.” Our bodies should be whatever our bodies naturally are.
Very thin women are real women. All women are real women. All bodies are beautiful and I just really would love to get to the point where we can have all different kinds of bodies and it’s just not commented on in the way that it is right now.
I don’t go to a psychic, but I would if I could justify spending the money. I love that kind of stuff. The problem is, I don’t know if I totally believe in it (thus having to justify the money). But I’ve done things like palm readers, fortune tellers, tarot readers, etc. and if you get someone who takes it seriously, I’ve had experiences like Melanie. Maybe it’s a coincidence or maybe there’s an energy that speaks to us in different ways, I don’t know. But I love Melanie’s story. It’s so specific! I, too, would completely dismiss news that good or exact until it happened. The most particular thing I got was my husband and I both went to a palm reader once. We arrived separately because we didn’t want to guy to track us as a couple. He gave us two very different but very individual and appropriate readings. The thing that freaked us out was he said to each of us that we had “two – maybe three, likely three children.” We had two kids and had a miscarriage in between. I still get goosebumps about that.
As for the body image stuff Melanie and Danielle talk about, there’s even more in the interview. I agree with Melanie on all of it. I appreciate that she doesn’t want her figure discussed on film, she simply wants to be considered a sexual being when appropriate. And I love her comments about how we have so many definitions for women. All women are real, let’s give everyone a break. But her comments about Jason complimenting her online really got to me. This happens to me. I know my husband finds me attractive and means what he says. But when he says anything publicly, someone always comments how special it is that he’s willing to go public like that and I feel like crap. People are so conditioned to only acknowledge one beauty standard. And the sad part is, they’ve had that standard dictated to them, so it’s not even technically their own opinion.
Photo credit: Instagram and Cover Images
I love her. She is so refreshingly honest.
I also appreciate how she says her husband has given up a lot of jobs to support her work. I wish more people were honest about that. Especially men. It would be nice if in articles about male Hollywood types…they even asked this question and they gave an honest response of..I can only do it because of the support I have at home type of thing.
I love her, and can’t wait for season 2!
I’ve always interested in psychics and have wanted to go to one. I need some good news.
Me too! If you find one who’s certifiably legit, do pass on the deets, please!
RE: Psychics
When I lived in LA is was a magnet for psychics. I never once approached any of them but they would ALWAYS approach me when I was out and about. One time one of them ran out of their house as I walked by. It was so weird. One male psychic said he could see my aura from a mile away. My BFF told me I basically had a neon welcome sign flashing above my head 24/7.
Maybe I just looked like an easy mark. I’ve been back in Maryland now for 8 years. No more psychics approaching me.
Just curious, what did they tell you? It would be creepy if everyone showed up with the same message!
Well, most of them I just politely said no to, but there were 2 male ones I let give me their spiel after they understood I wouldn’t pay them. Also, they seemed to be just bursting to tell me something. They didn’t make any future predictions but they absolutely nailed my personality, my situation and mindset at the time. I wasn’t freaked out or anything. I just them good job, thanks and went on my way.
“People are so conditioned to only acknowledge one beauty standard. And the sad part is, they’ve had that standard dictated to them, so it’s not even technically their own opinion”
Well put, it would be so great if more people realized this.
It’s so weird! I’ve now lived long enough to witness the beauty ideals change every decade and it never ceases to amaze me how what is first considered odd or different is then embraced and made the standard. I mean, the base model is usually slim and white, but details change. Regardless, it’s limiting and exclusionary and I wish we were better about all of it. It shouldn’t be “brave” to consider your smoking hot wife smoking hot. But it also shouldn’t be a requirement to be smoking hot, so…
Love her. Loved her since Heavenly Creatures- which i recommend.
Loved seeing her on 2 1/2 men- a show that was funnier than it had any right to be.
Love that she is talking about this stuff- at the same time, HATE that she has to defend/discuss not being size zero- like it is some kind of crime. Like she’s overweight, which she is not.
She is a great actress and she and Sophie (playing the younger version of Shauna) have created an amazing character in this wonderful, bizarre, screwed up world of Yellowjackets.
So excited for season 2.
Adding Lauren Ambrose as adult Van!!
Cannot wait to see who they cast as adult Lottie.
Should be wild.
“there are a lot of women who haven’t given birth or can’t give birth or don’t want to give birth, and their bodies should also be fine. It shouldn’t just be like, “Well, now, you’re a mother, so your body’s allowed to not be so tiny.” Our bodies should be whatever our bodies naturally are.
Very thin women are real women. All women are real women. All bodies are beautiful and I just really would love to get to the point where we can have all different kinds of bodies and it’s just not commented on in the way that it is right now.”
Well. Said.
I just think folks need to be respectful and careful with commenting on peoples bodies. Just THINK. There are some folks who are just so in your face with it like Kardashian/Jenners and someone like Gisele who always has sh*tty things to say about pregnant people and how they deal with their bodies and diets. I WILL always push back against those creeps though.
Also: I love hearing speak in her natural accent 🙂
There was a psychic and tarot reader who used to comment here a while back. Can’t remember exactly when, but she has been right about every prediction she made about different celebrities and how things would go politically in the world.
She said she never charged for her readings as it would be like “charging for giving a stranger directions”, and that she only did readings she was called to.
Kind of wish she would come back, it was so interesting to see how things would happen just like she predicted!
I used to go to a psychic and I thought she was awesome. The things she predicted for me came true, so I would always recommend her to people. Long story short, turns out her live in boyfriend was cheating and stealing from her throughout their whole relationship. She was kicked out of her apartment, because she literally had no money left to pay rent. Now, as a psychic shouldn’t see have been able to foresee that?