The wildest Gemma theories after Severance’s latest episode left everyone speechless

It’s hard to put into words how game changing that latest episode of Severance actually was, because it’s the kind of answer laden episode most TV shows won’t dish out to you til the finale. And yet here we are: We know that Gemma is alive – Mark’s wife who we were told died in a car crash and who we then knew was also Ms Casey inside Lumon. Nobody really had a clue what was going on here – if Gemma was still out there or something else. Most assumed Ms Casey might be a clone of the OG Gemma, but the truth seems to be far more sinister. Lumon is experimenting on Gemma – making her do stuff as various innies. Aka, getting dental work. It’s all weird – but what’s more wild are all these Severance Gemma theories on what the show is going to do with her character next.

1. Gemma wasn’t in any kind of crash at all

Of course, there were loads of theories Gemma didn’t DIE in the car crash – because we’ve just seen her in Lumon getting severed a billion times a day. But I have more theories, and the internet agrees, that Gemma didn’t even crash. Because we’ve seen her in that latest episode: No scars, no damage, she looks healthy. Well, as healthy as an experimented on prisoner could look. So I truly think no crash happened – it was Lumon interference from day dot.

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I think that they saw Mark and Gemma’s blood at the clinic – backed by Dr Mauer lurking there – and realised they were the perfect fit for Cold Harbor. Or whatever else they’re up to. In my theory, she was intercepted in her car and kidnapped by Lumon or lured there under false pretences. We all know how persuasive they can be over there.

2. What Lumon are experimenting on Gemma for

Gemma is being forced to endure a billion horrible things when she gets severed into different Innies who have to endure things like the dentist, plane turbulence and writing thank you notes. Cruel.

But what’s this all in aid of? Well, the internet and moi believe this is because Lumon are trying to push Gemma to her limit to test how far they can push the severance process. This really insightful comment from cast member Dichen Lachman explains the goals of Lumon in a fascinating way.

“I think it’s leaning into something that’s happening within our culture, which is that we don’t want to experience anything unpleasant,” Lachman told Vulture. “To some degree, I totally understand. In season one, you have the birthing center. That’s one of the most painful things you could experience in your whole life — I would know. What if you could delegate that experience to someone so you didn’t have to go through the pain? Even though, as a human being, there’s some ownership of that. Going through it and having a connection to the child is so beautiful. But we kind of want to get on a prescription of not having to suffer. If you think of it from a pharmaceutical point of view, it’s like, ‘We’re just taking it up a notch. You hate going to the dentist? We’ve got you. We’ll send somebody else, but you’ll still be going to the dentist.’

“Or having the fear of flying. I know [showrunner Dan Erickson] loathes writing thank-you notes — not because he’s ungrateful but because sometimes it’s so hard to figure out what to say to express your gratitude. I’ve done this before when I’ve worked on a movie: I’ve written 80 thank-you notes to all the crew members and they all start sounding the same. You lose your creativity, and you’re struggling to figure out a way to say “thank you” in a different way so that if someone reads someone else’s card, they’re not like, oh, this isn’t personal. It says the same thing.”

3. The remaining theory about Ms Casey

People think Ms Casey from Severance might still be some kind of clone, rather than another Innie of Gemma’s. Whilst all the Severance Gemma theories mostly point to Ms Casey’s time in Wellness working with MDR being another Innie from the Gemma we’ve seen in the Lumon experiments floor, others question it.

That’s mostly because of the goats. Animals known for their cloning history. And also because the specific Innie of Ms Casey seems so cold and clinical, almost robotic, compared to the rest of the Innies in the show. Compare her to Helly and she’s worlds apart, and not even similar to the other Innies we’ve seen of Gemma in that latest episode.

The Gemma Severance theories will truly never end.

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