'Orange Is the New Black' Season 2 Sounds Amazing

At this year’s PaleyFest panel for the highly celebrated Netflix series Orange Is The New Black, the actors involved with the show and its creator, Jenji Kohan, broke down exactly what we can expect from season two of Orange Is the New Black — and it all sounds amazing. Unfortunately, everyone will have to wait until June 6, when the second season is finally available for streaming in full on Netflix (sorry guys, quite a ways to go), but fingers crossed these tidbits (like those episode stills from last week) prevent any OITNB withdrawal.

Some of the highlights at the panel: Kohan commented that she hoped that rather than focusing too much on “tokenism” through the characters, she would like OITNB to start a larger discussion about the real stories of people who are in prison throughout the nation. “We talk about them like they’re people we know,” Kohan said at the panel. “And you don’t approach it like, ‘Well what does the black one do? What does the Latino one do?’ We should talk about the conversations that this show has sparked – who is in prison and why are people in prison.” Well said.

There was also some discussion about a new character who will be introduced next season, Vee. Played by actress Lorraine Toussaint, Vee was described as a “veteran street tough,” according to Deadline, who manipulated children into acting as drug runners for the drug business she created.

With all the talk surrounding this new cellmate, it appeared that Toussaint was staying true to her character. “As silent as I’ve been this evening is as silent as I’ll be in season 2 – at least I enter as such,” Toussaint said. Well, at least she was taking her part seriously, right? After that lack of commentary, Toussaint’s co-star, Laverne Cox (who we all know as Sophia Burset on the show) added that Vee’s character “shakes everything up.” And because no one is about to deny it, we’re all openly eager about seeing even more drama being stirred up on OITNB.

Though Toussaint didn’t have as much to say about how her role will have an impact on the show, many crowd favorites like Lea DeLaria (Big Boo) and Kate Mulgrew (Red) joined the panel to give us all more details on the season. DeLaria, for instance, mentioned how much the show has changed her life, noting how exactly 44 fans have asked her to sign screwdrivers, and Mulgrew delved into the topic of each of the characters’ crimes. There was some laughter over the fact that many of the actresses still don’t know what crime their characters committed to land themselves in prison, while Cox joked that Kohan is God because only she knows all the details.

So...at least we can all rest assured that we're not the only ones who are completely in the dark when it comes to various plot points within this show, right?

Image: Netflix