[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers through Yellowjackets, Season 2, Episode 8, “It Chooses.”]Thanks to Yellowjackets Season 2, Episode 8, “It Chooses,” we finally know the meaning of the queen of hearts playing card.

With Lottie (Courtney Eaton) on the sideline after Shauna (Sophie Nélisse) nearly beat her to death, another Yellowjacket appears to take charge to conduct the rituals in attempt to ensure the group is fed. While Mari (Alexa Barajas) insists that the wilderness won’t let Lottie die, Travis (Kevin Alves) is quick to reply, “It may not want her to, but if she’s starving, there’s no way she’s gonna live.” Natalie (Sophie Thatcher) points out that the same is true for every single one of them after which Taissa (Jasmin Savoy Brown) asserts, “We need to find a way to stay alive, and it can’t be her.” So who is it? Who’s going to step in for Lottie and figure out a way to keep them all fed? It appears to be Liv Hewson’s Van.
COLLIDER VIDEO OF THE DAYSCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT

The next scene we get in the cabin begins with the group standing in a circle with Van holding the chore cards. The plan? Deal the cards until someone selects the queen of hearts, and then that someone is to be sacrificed so the others can eat. No, we don’t get a scene confirming the “game” was Van’s idea, but during a Collider Forces interview, Hewson noted that they hadn’t seen the finished cut of Episode 8 yet, but said that they “kind of do” think Van came up with this particular plan.

Image via Showtime

Ultimately, it’s Natalie who draws the queen of hearts, but her sacrifice is deemed unnecessary when Javi (Luciano Leroux) drowns in the icy lake during her escape.

While that may mark the end of this round of this extremely twisted card game, the scene could be loaded with clues worth keeping in mind going forward. We know what the queen of hearts means, but what about the other cards? Given the showrunners’ knack for sneaking in seemingly small details that matter, one might wonder, do the other cards have meaning, too?

During our interview, Hewson couldn’t confirm if there’s significance to the other cards, but did reveal that they were not drawn randomly. Each one of them was scripted.

“Okay, I don’t know, but I will tell you, the cards that we pull were written down in the script. And we asked on the day, we were like, ‘Do we have to decide what order the cards [are in]?’ And they were like, ‘No, no, no.’ They made sure that they were in order so that every time each character drew the same one.”

Image via Showtime

Misty (Samantha Hanratty) begins by taking the eight of diamonds. After that, Akilah (Nia Sondaya) draws the seven of clubs and then Van takes the jack of hearts. What does it mean? Hewson exclaimed, “I don’t know! I’ve got no idea!” However, they did offer up a little tease of what’s happening to Van and what to expect in the season finale:

“There’s a real corruption of the beautiful things about her, I think. Like her determination and her passion for storytelling, and her care for other people. And it’s fascinating what happens by the end of this season. It’s so interesting.”

As for the other cards drawn, Shauna gets the four of diamonds, Travis takes the ace of clubs, Taissa picks the six of clubs, Melissa (Jenna Burgess) draws the three of hearts, Javi winds up with the king of spades, and then that’s when Natalie ends the game by taking the kill card.

What do they all mean? It seems unlikely we’ll get full details on that matter in next week’s Season 2 finale, but like just about everything in Yellowjackets, I’m willing to bet those cards have meaning and the truth behind them will slowly be revealed next week and beyond.

Looking for more from Hewson on their journey in film and television thus far, and Yellowjackets Season 2? There’s loads more from where this came from! Check out the video version of their Collider Forces interview at the top of this article or listen to the chat in podcast form below: