It’s been almost three years since the hit Apple TV+ series Severance last appeared on our screens. A breathtakingly original sci-fi-slash-psychological thriller, the show centers on Mark Scout, an employee at the mysterious Lumon Industries. Upon landing a job at Lumon, Mark and his fellow employees are “severed”, splitting their memories between two selves: the work persona (the Innie), who exists solely on Lumon’s vast, maze-like basement floor, and the Outie, who clocks off and goes home at the end of every day with no recollection of the previous eight hours.
As the series unfolded in the spring of 2022, the dark mystery of Lumon, its employees, and the intrusive higher-ups deepened, concluding in a jaw-dropping cliffhanger that left audiences desperate to discover what happened next. With the hotly-anticipated Season 2 set to premiere on January 17, the wait is almost over. In the meantime, read on below to see who’s returning for Season 2, and find out who’s clocking into Lumon for the first time.
Keep reading to get to know the cast and characters of Severance Season 2.
Adam Scott
Mark Scout
A former history professor, Mark chose to undergo the severance procedure following the untimely death of his wife. Deep in grief, Mark decided that eight hours of blissful daily ignorance was the perfect solution to his problems – although his sister, Devon, and brother-in-law, Ricken, quietly disapprove of his coping method. At Lumon, Innie Mark is the newly-promoted head of Macrodata Refinement. A frazzled middle manager, Mark struggles to keep his four-person department in check as the strange goings-on at Lumon intensify.
Adam Scott plays Mark Scout. Best known for his roles in Parks and Recreation and Party Down, Scott recently appeared in 2024’s Madame Web and the television series Loot. His upcoming projects include the thriller Double Booked (which he also directs) and the comedy-drama The Saviors.
Zach Cherry
Dylan George
Image via Apple TV+
Obsessed with company perks and fantasizing about what his Outie gets up to in the outside world (the leading theories are muscle shows and womanizing), Macrodata Refinement wouldn’t be the same without the king of one-liners, Dylan. The life of the (waffle) party, Dylan goes above and beyond to look out for his MDR co-workers and is extremely distrustful of the elusive Optics and Design department.
Zach Cherry plays Dylan George. Known for his role as Wolf in the animated television series Duncanville, Cherry joined The Great American Baking Show as a host in 2023 and returned in 2024 for its seventh season. His upcoming projects include the comedy short The Dinner Plan, and the comedy All Night Wrong.
Britt Lower
Helly Riggs
Image via Apple TV+
The newest member of the MDR department, Helly doesn’t exactly find it easy to fit into Lumon’s strict dictatorship. Rebellious from the very beginning and stubborn to a fault, Helly proves she’ll stop at nothing to end her time as a miserable Innie at Lumon. As her desperate attempts to make her Outie see sense grow increasingly more outlandish, Mark finds himself fearing for her safety.
Britt Lower plays Helly Riggs. Lower previously appeared in the television series High Maintenance as Lee, and Man Seeking Woman as Liz. Her next project, the ABC drama movie Until the Wedding, is set to premiere soon.
Tramell Tillman
Seth Milchick
Supervisor-slash-babysitter of the severed employees, Seth Milchick is not someone to be crossed. Cool, calm, and collected on the surface, Milchick can handle a crisis like a pro – whether that be providing our favorite Innies with some friendly wisdom (and the occasional Music Dance Experience), or overseeing their punishments in the dreaded Break Room.
Tramell Tillman plays Seth Milchick. Tillman previously appeared in the television series Godfather of Harlem, and the animation Marvel’s Hit-Monkey. This year, he’s set to star alongside Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, currently in post-production.
Jen Tullock
Devon Scout-Hale
Image via Apple TV+
Devon is Mark’s sister, and between helping her struggling brother through his grief, juggling new motherhood, and her marriage to the perplexing enigma that is Ricken, it’s safe to say she has her work cut out. Devon and Mark share a close sibling bond, and she’s the first person he confides in when he realizes Lumon isn’t what it seems.
Jen Tullock plays Devon Scout-Hale. Tullock starred in the television series The Coop as Iwona, and in 2022 appeared in the dark comedy Spirited with Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds. Her upcoming project, A Tree Fell in the Woods, is currently in post-production.
Dichen Lachman
Ms. Casey
Possibly the most mysterious persona on the basement floor, Ms. Casey is the wellness counselor to the severed employees. Strange and eerily robot-like, it’s hard to believe anything of who Ms. Casey was on the outside remains within her Innie-self. How she came to end up at Lumon is still somewhat of a mystery, but we can’t wait to find out.
Dichen Lachman plays Ms. Casey. Lachman is best known for her roles in Jurassic World Dominion and 2024’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, and the television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Animal Kingdom. She will next appear in the comedy-horror Vampires of the Velvet Lounge.
Michael Chernus
Ricken Hale
Author, inspirational speaker, philosophical marvel… the words and phrases Devon’s husband and Mark’s brother-in-law, Ricken, would probably use to describe himself. While Outie Mark good-naturedly (mostly) tolerates the lovable nuisance, Innie Mark looks to Ricken as an oracle. Is Ricken what he seems, or is he hiding dark secrets beneath a carefully crafted facade?
Michael Chernus plays Ricken Hale. Chernus is known for his roles in the television series Patriot and Dead Ringers, and recently appeared in the 2024 biographical drama A Complete Unknown starring Timothee Chalamet. His next project will see him appear as the title character in the crime-drama John Wayne Gacy, currently in production.
John Turturro
Irving Bailiff
Image via Apple TV+
As MDR’s most senior employee, uptight Irving prides himself on setting a shining example for his co-workers. A stickler for the rules, Irving can quote the Lumon handbook by heart – but that doesn’t stop him from landing himself in trouble once or twice for dozing on company time. However, when Irving meets the head of Optics and Design, Burt, his devotion to Lumon’s strict code of conduct begins to waver.
John Turturro plays Irving Bailiff. A powerhouse of the indie genre, Turturro has appeared in over one hundred projects and is best known for his roles in 2013’s Fading Gigolo, 1991’s Barton Fink, and 1994’s Quiz Show. His upcoming projects include the drama The Thing That Hurts, and the adventure-comedy Wilder & Me.
Christopher Walken
Burt Goodman
Image via Apple TV+
Head of Optics and Design, severed Lumon employee Burt finds himself growing closer to Irving. Burt’s department provides Lumon’s eccentric art pieces and is also tasked with making seemingly random products such as watering cans. Like every Lumon department we’ve seen so far, the “why” of it all remains a total mystery.
Christopher Walken plays Burt Goodman. A legend of stage and screen, the award-winning actor has appeared in over one hundred projects in his seventy years in the industry, including The Deer Hunter, Catch Me If You Can, and The Prophecy. He recently starred as Emperor in Dune: Part Two, and as Frank Sheldon in the television series The Outlaws. Next, Walken will appear in the comedy-musical That’s Amore!, which also stars John Travolta and Katherine Heigl.
Patricia Arquette
Harmony Cobel
The terrifying manager of Lumon’s severed floor, Ms. Cobel rules her underlings with a chilling combination of intimidation and threat. With a religious-like devotion to Lumon’s founders, the Eagans, the mystery of how exactly Cobel fits into the bigger picture only deepened as the first season unfolded. Her obsession with Mark’s life on the outside is yet another mystery Severance fans are desperate to solve.
Patricia Arquette plays Harmony Cobel. With over forty years in the industry, Arquette made her feature film debut in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, and has appeared in many critically acclaimed projects, including 1993’s True Romance, 2014’s Boyhood, and the television series Medium. Her next project, the comedy-horror They Will Kill You, is currently in production.
New Cast Members in ‘Severance’ Season 2
Check out who’s clocking into the world of Lumon Industries for the first time in Severance’s sophomore season below:
- New members of the Macrodata Refinement department include Alia Shawkat (Arrested Development) as Gwendolyn Y., Bob Balaban (Gosford Park) as Mark W., and Stefano Carannante (Hey Joe) as Dario R.
- Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones) as Lorne, an employee of Lumon.
- Olafur Darri Olafsson (Somebody Somewhere) as Lumon higher-up Mr. Drummond.
- Merritt Wever (Marriage Story) as Dylan’s wife, Gretchen.
- John Noble (The Lord of the Rings) as Burt’s husband, Fields.
- Sarah Bock (Bruiser) as the new Deputy Manager of the severed employees, Miss Huang.
- Robby Benson (Beauty and the Beast) in an as-yet-unconfirmed role.
Severance
