Ritu Arya Has Thoughts About Your 'Umbrella Academy' Season 3 Theories
Spoilers for season 2 of The Umbrella Academy ahead.
To prepare for her role as Lila Pitts, the devilish wit who befriends (and antagonizes) Diego Hargreeves (David Castañeda) in the new season of The Umbrella Academy, Ritu Arya read all the comics on which the show is based. She watched all of season 1. And then she put up porn all over her trailer.
“Everyone thought I was a pervert,” she laughs. “I saw in this Angelina Jolie interview that she put up porn in her trailer to get into character for Girl, Interrupted. I did that not so much to sexualize Lila, but to do something bold.”
Given her level of commitment to Lila, you can imagine how the English actress felt when she found out her character, whom she assumed would make a one-episode appearance, would in fact be a long-lost sibling of the Hargreeves children—and share their super-powered strengths. "Steve Blackman keeps everything so secret!" she says. "He didn't tell any of the cast I was a sibling until episode 10 came out!"
Though she has to keep her lips zipped about what might come next (she claims to know nothing about season 3), she does have some strong feelings about where Lila should go now that she’s escaped the Handler’s (Kate Walsh) clutches and run off with one of those pesky time-traveling briefcases. Now that Arya’s become a household name—and will only become a bigger one when she stars in upcoming action film Red Notice—she’s sharing her two cents on those fan theories y’all have come up with.
What was it like coming onto the set of The Umbrella Academy? Was it ever intimidating to be part of this huge production?
You'd think it would be, but everyone on the show is so generous and considerate and welcoming, any anxiety I might've had on those first few days just went out the window. The cast was so inclusive. I was never made to feel like the newbie.
After everything that's revealed at the end of season 2, do you think that Lila still loves and cares about the Handler, who has acted as her mother for so many years?
My instinct says yes, because it's so hard to stop loving someone, even when they betray you in the worst way.
Do you think Lila is just as messed-up as the rest of the Hargreeves siblings?
I think more so. At least they had each other growing up! She has no one, and she's so lonely. I think the Handler's so much worse than their dad, in terms of her hunger for power and mistreatment.
Apart from Lila's obvious attraction to Diego, why do you think she's drawn to him the way she is?
It's hard for her to meet her match, because she is so powerful. When someone finally calls her out on her bullshit, it creates a connection that she has not felt before. And that makes her love him.
If there were anything that you could wish for Lila next season, what would it be?
I'd love to see how her relationship with the siblings develops. I'd love to see what happens with her and Diego. And her relationship with herself, because we leave her at a point [where] she's breaking, you can either implode or you can grow in a totally different direction. It's so exciting to think she can be in any state if we came back to season 3. And also in any time period!
I've been reading through all the Reddit threads and theories about what might happen next, and I want to hear your thoughts on some of the most popular and wacky theories around Lila. Theory number one: At the end of Season 2, Lila takes the briefcase and disappears. Does she goes back in time to save her parents?
Oh my God, I love it. That makes complete sense to me! Okay, but why has she not already done that? Because that would mess up the timeline?
Maybe the Handler was keeping her from going back and saving them because it would mess up the timeline?
You've just written season 3: Lila's journey!
Theory number two: When traveling back to the '60s, the Umbrella Academy did something that changed the future timeline, which is why they come back to 2019 and meet the Sparrow Academy. Some people seem to think Lila is going to be part of the Sparrow Academy.
Oh, I know as much about the Sparrow Academy as anyone that watched season 2. I have no idea.
Theory number three: Lila's actually one of many super-powered kids the Handler tracked down and brought under her wing. She's not the only adopted child of the Handler.
Oh, no. That breaks my heart. I feel so much less special. [Laughs]
Okay, final theory: Lila is the one who causes the next apocalypse.
Yeah, I’m 100 percent down. Yup. That is the correct answer…But I don't know. I don’t know if I want that? But I love it! I love and hate that.
Last thing. Tell me about your next project, Red Notice.
We're about halfway through filming. We had to stop halfway through because of lockdown. I play an INTERPOL agent on the hunt for the world's most wanted art thief, and it's incredible. Dwayne [Johnson] and Ryan [Reynolds] are so good at what they do.
I haven't had my scenes with Gal [Gadot] yet. I'm taking it day by day. It’s such an incredible experience. I'm just so aware of what I can say and what I can't! I'm so anxious! But it's so fun, and I feel like I'm learning and growing so much. I'm very excited to go back.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
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