Ella Purnell Reveals Why Lucy’s Dark Turn in Fallout Season 2 Thrilled Her
Ella Purnell opens up about Lucy MacLean’s shocking transformation in Fallout season 2, episode 4, sharing why this unexpected twist became her favorite moment to play and how it challenged her as an actress.
Ella Purnell, who stars as Lucy MacLean in the second season of Fallout, recently opened up about her character’s wild new side in episode 4—and she couldn’t be more excited about it. The actress described Lucy’s sudden embrace of violence as her favorite moment in the Prime Video series so far, calling the experience both surprising and exhilarating.
Reflecting on the episode, Purnell admitted she was taken aback by Lucy’s actions.
“I couldn’t believe it. Coming from any other character, you’d be like, ‘Yeah, it’s just Fallout,’ but just something about it being Lucy, it feels scandalous,”
she said in a recent interview.
“It’s like when your little sister goes out and gets a little wild—it’s crazy.”
Lucy’s Unpredictable Shift
Episode 4, titled ‘The Demon in the Snow’ and directed by Stephen Williams, finds Lucy waking up in a New California Republic camp, only to realize she’s been hooked up to a mysterious IV. As she leaves the safety of the camp with The Ghoul, played by Walton Goggins, Lucy starts to experience intense itchiness and wild mood swings. These symptoms quickly spiral, leading her to lose all self-control and gleefully take out a group of Elvis impersonators on the edge of New Vegas. The culprit? She’s been dosed with Buffout, and now she’s hooked.
Purnell explained that playing this version of Lucy was a brand-new challenge for her.
“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,”
she shared.
“I didn’t know how it was gonna turn out. It turned out good, thank God, I think.”
Exploring Lucy’s Bravery and Humor
For Purnell, Lucy’s transformation was more than just a plot twist—it was a chance to explore a different kind of courage.
“She’s very tough, she’s very brave, I think much braver than I would be, given the circumstances,”
she said. The actress found it fascinating to portray a character who, for a brief moment, doesn’t even consider the possibility of death.
“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 continues on Wednesday, January 14. Fans can keep up with the latest episodes and dive deeper into the show’s timeline and hidden Easter eggs as the story unfolds.