Did Severance Just Confirm One Of The Oldest Theories About What Lumon Really Does?
Warning! This article contains spoilers for Severance season 2's episode 4.
Through one fascinating plot development in season 2's episode 4, Severance seems to have hinted that the oldest theory about Lumon's work might have some plausibility. Since the Apple TV+ sci-fi show unfolds like a typical puzzle-box mystery drama, every little development in its story has served as fuel for myriad theories since the beginning. While some of these theories perfectly align with the show's themes and have even materialized in some capacity, others seem a little too bizarre to be true.
However, given how Severance has taken many unexpected turns and introduced several unforeseeable twins since its opening moments, anything can happen in the series' future story beats. One theory about Lumon's purpose and work, which has intrigued audiences since the show's beginning, was starting to lose its credibility over time. However, Severance season 2 episode 4's events have again called attention to the theory, making it hard not to wonder if it reveals what Lumon is trying to achieve.
MDR's "Twins" At Woe's Hollow Support The Theory That Lumon Is Making Clones
The "Twins" Come Off As The MDR Workers' Clones
Ever since Severance has confirmed that Ms. Casey and Mark's wife, Gemma, look the same, many viewers have theorized that Lumon might be making clones. Since Ms. Casey only looks like Gemma but does not retain any of her personality traits, the cloning theory has always seemed quite plausible. In Severance season 2's episode 4, the MDR workers also cross paths with strange human-like figures who look a lot like them and point them toward Woe's Hollow.
When they eventually meet Milchick in the flesh during the team outing, he reveals that Lumon decided to give them "twins" to help them get a better understanding of Kier's relationship with his twin, Dieter. The appearance of these twins makes it hard not to wonder if Lumon is actually creating clones. While the cloning theory could align with the show's themes and explain some of its strangest plot developments, it has already been debunked by Severance's main cast.
Severance's Cast & Crew Already Debunked The Cloning Theory
Adam Scott & Patricia Arquette Have Confirmed Lumon Has Nothing To Do With Cloning
In an interview (via Entertainment Weekly), Adam Scott (who plays Mark in Severance) was told that a popular theory suggests Lumon is working with cloning technology, which would explain how Gemma exists in the company's office building despite being dead. Instead of shrouding details surrounding the show's story and keeping viewers guessing, Adam Scott dismissed the theory by saying it "sounds like what Lumon would be doing in a super boring version of Severance.”
Since the theory has been debunked, Ms. Casey, too, cannot be Gemma's clone, hinting that Lumon might have found a way to revive Mark's wife.
Patricia Arquette, who plays Ms. Cobel, added to the discussion by confirming that the theory is "very far off and wrong." Given how the show's cast has downright denied the existence of any kind of cloning in Severance, the "twins" were likely not what they seemed. They might have looked similar to the MDR workers, but there is more to them than meets the eye. Since the theory has been debunked, Ms. Casey, too, cannot be Gemma's clone, hinting that Lumon might have found a way to revive Mark's wife.
What Really Are MDR's "Twins" In Severance Season 2?
Many Intriguing Theories Have Speculated Their Purpose
One of the most intriguing theories surrounding the "twins" suggests they could be synthetic humans or animatronic versions of the Lumon employees. Lumon created them as future replacements for their human workforce. By refining data in the MDR, Mark and his team are unknowingly making the "twins" more human and capable of working at Lumon. According to another theory, the "twins" might have been overridden into the MDR workers' consciousness and may not actually exist.
Severance Key Facts Breakdown | |
Created By | Dan Erickson |
Rotten Tomatoes Critics' Score | 97% |
Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score | 83% |
Streaming On | Apple TV+ |
Many viewers have also theorized that everything in Severance season 2's episode 4 might have been a simulation, including the twins, which would explain all the strange developments in its story. A fascinating theory also deduces that "Dieter Eagan" serves as an anagram for "AI-Generated," which could hint that the twins have been created by AI. While this Severance theory seems a little out there, it could explain why the "twins" look so distorted and uncanny.
Severance is a psychological thriller series featuring Adam Scott as Mark Scout, an employee at Lumon Industries who undergoes a "severance" procedure to separate his work and personal memories. However, as work and life personas mysteriously begin to collide, it quickly becomes clear that not all is as it seems. Created by Dan Erickson and directed by Ben Stiller and Aoife McArdle.
- Cast
- Adam Scott, Britt Lower, Zach Cherry, Tramell Tillman, Jen Tullock, Dichen Lachman, Michael Chernus, John Turturro, Christopher Walken, Patricia Arquette, Sarah Bock, Marc Geller, Michael Cumpsty
- Showrunner
- Dan Erickson, Mark Friedman
- Directors
- Ben Stiller
- Writers
- Dan Erickson
- Main Genre
- Drama
- Seasons
- 2
- Story By
- dan erickson
- Streaming Service(s)
- AppleTV+
