Did Helly R. lie about her identity in Severance season 2? What does it mean for Lumon?

Severance season 2 premiered its first episode, Hello, Ms. Cobel, on January 17, 2025, on Apple TV+. The show's creator, Dan Erickson, wrote the episode, directed by Ben Stiller. The dystopian thriller series has returned three years after its first season explored the story of Lumon and its employees in 2022.

In the season 1 finale episode, Mark, Helly, and Irving used the overtime contingency to learn more about their respective outies. While discussing their experiences in the first episode of Severance season 2, Helly R. lied to her friends about her outie's real identity. She may be unknowingly helping Lumon from being exposed for its sinister activities by not revealing that her outie is related to the company.

Apple TV has described the official synopsis of Severance season 2 as follows:

"Mark and his friends learn the dire consequences of trifling with the severance barrier, leading them further down a path of woe."

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for Severance season 2 episode 1.

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Why did Helly R. lie in Severance season 2 episode 1?

Severance season 2 episode 1 showed the group reuniting for the first time since the overtime contingency from season 1. Mark S., Irving B., and Helly R. awakened in the outside world, while Dylan stayed behind to operate the program from inside Lumon. As the innies met their respective outies for the first time, they made some startling discoveries.

Helly R. learned that her outie is named Helena Eagan, the daughter of Lumon's current CEO, Jame Eagan. She got severed to build the public's trust and support in the controversial program. Moreover, she found herself waking up in the middle of a Lumon gala and about to give a speech in favor of the severance program.

After returning to Lumon, Helly R. decides to withhold this information from her friends. She instead tells them that her outie does not have a family and lives alone in an apartment. When Irving points out a hole in her story, she quickly dismisses it. Later, she tells Mark that she sees the innies as separate from the outies and promises to help him find Gemma/Ms. Casey.

Shortly after the episode aired, showrunner Dan Erickson spoke to Variety about Helly R.'s reason for lying to her friends. He said that she felt "shame" for being an Eagan and worried how her friends would react to the revelation.

"All of the characters were rattled by what they saw, in one way or another. And each of them has to make a decision when they come back as to how much of that they are willing or ready to share."

He continued:

"Helly made the most horrifying discovery that she could have made — because she is, it turns out, what she hates the most. There’s a lot of shame that comes with that, and there is a concern that she won’t be accepted by her friends. She knows they all vilify the Eagans, and she is one. She doesn’t want to have to take on that baggage."

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Who is inside Lumon in Severance season 2? Helly R. or Helena Eagan?

Soon after the episode aired, fans floated a mind-blowing theory online that Helly R. did not return to Lumon. It was her outie Helena sent in to spy on the innies and stop them from doing real harm to the company. The fact that she chose to lie to her co-workers is the biggest sign that something may be up with her.

Helena is clearly committed to the company and she was willing to undergo the severance program to improve its public image. It's not a far stretch to imagine that she would agree to clean up the mess made by her innie by pretending to be her. If Lumon is capable of going to such lengths, then the company is far more evil and powerful than previously thought.

If this theory amounts to nothing, then Helly R. is unwittingly helping Lumon keep a tight lid on its sinister activities. She is the only one with direct knowledge about the company's operations in the real world. Mark and Irving did not learn any Lumon-specific information during the overtime contingency.

By keeping her friends in the dark, Helly R. may delay or stop them from exposing Lumon's truth to the public and the world at large. It needs to be seen if she comes clean to her co-workers in the subsequent episodes after taking some time to process the bombshell revelation.

Her next move will shed more light on her true motives and determine which side she is on in the fight between Lumon and its MDR workers.

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Stay tuned for weekly recaps of the latest released episodes from Severance season 2.