MANILA, Philippines — In the last two seasons of You, fans of the hit Netflix thriller saw Tati Gabrielle portraying the role of Marienne, the object of infatuation, affection and then deadly obsession for the antihero Joe Goldberg (played by Penn Badgley).
She was introduced to audiences in Season 3 as a librarian and single mom recovering from substance abuse and fighting for the custody of her daughter. In the end of Season 4, viewers saw (spoiler alert!) a “happy ending” for Marienne, as she broke free Joe’s literal cage and clutches and reunited with her daughter, thus becoming the only living survivor (so far) among the “love interests” of the hopeless romantic serial killer.
But is Marienne truly and finally free of Joe? Recently, The STAR got to hear Tati’s thoughts about the fate and future of her fan-favorite character. But first, there’s a very interesting bit we learned from the actress, who’s also known for her roles in Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Kaleidoscope and Uncharted. Born to a Korean mom and African-American dad6, she made sure that her identity as a mixed-race woman of color was honored on the series and that how her character responded to situations in the narrative was authentic and reflective of real life.
Before signing up for You Season 3, Tati recalled expressing to showrunner Sera Gamble during the casting process: “I am a mixed-race Black woman, and Black women or women of color in general come with a certain set of awareness, and I feel like an inherent strength and survival instinct that’s sort of passed down generationally due to generational trauma, due to the lives in which most people of color have had to live.”
“So, I asked her like, you know, are you going to give credence to cultural character trait? Meaning, Marienne as a Black woman wouldn’t be as oblivious. That she would be even more keen to her surroundings and be more aware because she would be more than likely, especially in a town (Madre Linda, Season 3’s fictional setting) that was predominantly white or predominantly lacked color, be on the edge of protecting herself, always wanting to make sure that she’s okay.”
“So, I asked (Sera) like, are you going to give credence to the fact that she is a woman of color and not make her in any way stupid basically? Because I think that would be something that would be very hard to grasp for audience members, especially audience members of color. Like whenever we all watch a horror film and the Black person is the first person to get killed, all Black people (would be) like that would never happen. We would be the first people to run. Like, there’s no question about it. We’re not going into the dark corner to see what’s there. No (laughs)!
“And Sera was very open to that conversation, which I was so grateful for. I really respect her for that. She was like, ‘At any point you feel that something doesn’t sit right or feel right, that it would be out of character, let me know and let’s talk about it and we can change things.’
“So, we didn’t hit many or hardly any bumps along the road. There was, I think, maybe one or two things in Season 3 that I was like, hey, and again, she was always open to talking about it.”
Tatti also particularly felt the lead star’s support, praising Penn “as a really great advocate and great ally throughout this course of shooting Season 3 and Season 4.”
Meanwhile, Season 5 or the final chapter of You was recently confirmed by Netflix. While returning cast members haven’t been revealed yet, Tati said that she, too, wondered if her character would still want justice or go about her life in an interview that took place before the Season 5 official announcement.
Below are more excerpts from the 27-year-old star’s exclusive interview with The STAR.
ON WHAT VIEWERS CAN LEARN FROM HER CHARACTER:
“I hope that they can learn resilience and accountability, self-accountability, and know the value of honesty. Because I think the biggest thing about Marienne is how honest she is both to herself and to Joe, that she’s the person that’s not afraid to put the mirror up in front of anybody and be like, take a look at yourself and be willing to accept it.
“So, I hope that people can take that away from Marienne, of knowing that living with honesty is the best policy, not only for yourself. To have the greatest experience, I think, in the world, you’ve got to lead with honesty. And that’s how your pack can stay clear. That’s what I hope they take from her.”
ON THE CHALLENGES OF PLAYING MARIENNE:
“The most challenging part was trying to find the balance of Marienne’s like emotional, internal battle with having the love that she did have for Joe and trying to reconcile with the horrifying truth that he’s a murderer and that he’s not she thought he was going to be, or who she thought he was.
“And yeah, just like trying to grapple with — if you fall in love with somebody, does that love go away in an instant when you find out the most terrible thing about your partner or significant other? That was really difficult for me. Trying to not make it all seem like it was coming out of left field. To try to give homage or credence to the emotions and the love that they had built, while still fearing for one’s life.”
ON THE FATE OF HER CHARACTER IN THE SHOW:
“I don’t know the answer to that. I’m very curious as well to see where Season 5 goes and what happens there. I think to a certain extent, she is free of Joe. He thinks that she’s dead. So, it’s like she could leave it there. But I always wonder, too, is there a part of Marienne that feels the need to bring justice to Joe and make him sort of face his wrongs in a way that he’s never done before.
“I think Marienne has a very large humanitarian quality and doesn’t want anybody to have to experience things that she did, or that any of his previous victims have taken on. So, I’m very curious to see whether or not Marienne is truly done and gonna go about her life or if she feels that something more needs to be done.”
(You Season 4 is streaming on Netflix.)