'Orange Is the New Black' Season 3 Release: Jenji Kohan Reveals What New 'Lighter' Season Will Be About
Orange Is the New Black's highly anticipated third season will reportedly have a lighter tone than the previous season.
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Jenji Kohan, the creator of Orange Is the New Black, appeared at a For Your Consideration panel at the DGA on Wednesday where she spoke on the lightness of season 3.
The producer also delved into certain themes present throughout the new season.
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"It's lighter than season 2, it's a season of faith, it's a season of motherhood, it's a progression of everyone's stories," Kohan explained. "I think we get deeper into our characters and we meet people."
Ironically, the light tone is in direct competition with the recent Emmy ruling. The Emmys ruled Orange Is the New Black a drama series earlier in the year, meaning they have to compete in all the drama categories instead of comedy.
Kohan spoke on the importance of both comedy and drama in the show.
"It's very important to me to play in both worlds because I don't think anything is all serious or all humorous," Kohan said. "I remember watching dramas and thinking when there was no humor or no comic relief that they didn't reflect any sort of reality because there's no such thing as life without humor. (But) you need a dramatic spine to hold it together."
Actresses who appeared on the panel with Kohan included Taylor Schilling (Piper), Kate Mulgrew (Red), Laverne Cox (Sophia), Uzo Aduba (Suzanne), Danielle Brooks (Taystee) and Selenis Leyva (Gloria).
Cox spoke to the way Orange Is the New Black has changed the television landscape through its depiction of women as real, complex human beings, warts and all.
"It validates people's experiences," Cox said. "So many people, I think, have watched our show and felt their experiences, their bodies, their gender identity, their sexuality, their age, are validated in the diverse women that are portrayed on our show. When you can see someone like you on TV, it's like, 'OK, I exist now.'"
Orange Is the New Black season 3 is set to be released on Friday, June 12 on Netflix.
