Fallout Star Ella Purnell Explains Lucy’s Drug Trip And Her Deadly Side

5 days ago 7

Ella Purnell as Lucy MacLean in Fallout season 2

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Ella Purnell’s return as Lucy MacLean in Fallout 2 sees the character reach a turning point after a "scandalous" drug trip.

In an interview with Deadline about the most recent episode, “The Demon in the Snow,” Purnell discussed Lucy’s unexpected descent into violence as a standout moment of the season. The episode features a drug-induced sequence that makes her go against her moral standards when it comes to using violence. This reveals a very dark but refreshing side of the character, and is one of the actor's favorite moments of Fallout season 2.

Purnell explained this moment as her favorite because of how shocking it is to witness this type of behavior from someone like Lucy, who is usually so empathetic. While violence is a staple of the Fallout universe, her character acting irrationally carries a lot more weight because it is the opposite of what the audience has come to expect from her.

She added that the change pushed her into new territory as an actor, giving her the chance to explore a darker, more aggressive person than she had in the past. Despite her initial uncertainty about how this would land, the result adds depth to Lucy’s journey and could hint at a potential change in pace for the series overall.

I couldn’t believe it. I felt so scandalous. Coming from any other character, you’d be like, ‘Yeah, it’s just Fallout,’ but just something about it being Lucy, it feels scandalous. I couldn’t believe it. It’s like when you’re like little sister goes out and gets a little wild—it’s crazy,” she said. “Very fun to see that side of her, to play that side of her, and also, a new experience for me. I haven’t done that a lot in my career. I didn’t know how it was gonna turn out. It turned out good, thank God, I think.

Lucy’s violent turn was triggered by the Buffout steroid drip that saved her life after a near-death experience. However, the drug made her completely abandon her moral compass and caused her to essentially turn to murder in an almost cartoonish way, seemingly without a single care in the world.

Purnell explained that the sequence was fun and that she enjoyed portraying a version of Lucy without fear. Her temporarily altered mindset also opened the door for some comedic moments as Lucy moves through the chaos, not caring about any consequences that she might face.

But yeah, very fun to play a side of Lucy that is fearless for once. And she’s very tough, she’s very brave, I think much braver than I would be, given the circumstances. But to play a character who truly doesn’t conceive the notion of death for just five minutes of the day, that suddenly there’s no stakes, it changes all the tension in the scene, changes all the tension that drives the character. And I get to play with some comedy in there, it was really fun.

Fallout season 2 releases new episodes every Wednesday on Prime Video.