The Antler Queen returns to your nightmares this fall.

When does Yellowjackets season 4 come out? Everything we know about the hit thriller’s final season

The Antler Queen returns to your nightmares this fall.

By Randall Colburn

Randall Colburn

Randall Colburn is a writer and editor at **. His work has previously appeared on The A.V. Club, The Guardian, The Ringer, and many other publications.

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August 20, 2026 4:40 p.m. ET

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Sophie Thatcher as Nat in the ‘Yellowjackets’ season 3 finale. Credit:

Paramount+ with SHOWTIME

- *Yellowjackets* season 4 will be the show’s final season.

- Season 4 will explore the Yellowjackets’ rescue from the wilderness and their return to society, the showrunners teased to EW.

- Season 4 premieres Nov. 20, 2026.

*Yellowjackets** *will end with its upcoming fourth season.

The time-hopping horror-drama follows members of a high school girls’ soccer team across two timelines. In the ’90s, a plane crash strands them in the Canadian wilderness. Nearly 25 years later, they’re still reckoning with the secrets and trauma of what happened there.

Season 3 wrapped in April 2025, knocking off multiple fan-favorite characters and some big-name guest players. (Joel McHale, we hardly knew ye.)

Season 4 being the show’s last may surprise longtime viewers, given that co-creator Ashley Lyle told ** in 2023 that she had a five-season plan for the show. “The original plan was about five seasons, and we feel like we’re still on track for that,” Lyle said at the time. “We don’t really see this as being more than a five-season show. I think that there are shows that can go forever, but I think that when you’re telling such a deeply serialized story and it’s about these characters’ lives, you want to reach a satisfying conclusion and not just drag things out forever.”

So, when is the fourth and final season of *Yellowjackets* coming out? And what will it be about? Read on for everything we know about *Yellowjackets* season 4.

Will there be a season 4 of Yellowjackets?

‘Yellowjackets’.

Kailey Schwerman/Paramount+

Paramount announced in May 2025 that a fourth season of *Yellowjackets* was on the way. The following October, Lyle and co-creator Bart Nickerson released a joint statement revealing that the fourth season would be the series’ last.

“After three incredible seasons, and great consideration, we’re excited to announce that we will be bringing the story of *Yellowjackets* to its twisted conclusion in this fourth and final season,” the caption began. “We’ve always known there would come a point when the story would tell us it wants to end, and it’s our belief that our job — our responsibility — is to listen.”

The statement continued, “Telling this emotional, wild, and deeply human story has been a profoundly meaningful experience and a true honor for us, and we’re so very grateful to the brilliant cast, crew, and writers who have bravely gone on the journey with us to bring it to life. Most of all, we want to thank the fans who have stuck with us through every moment, mystery, and meal — the Hive is nothing without you!”

How did Yellowjackets season 3 end?

Sophie Nélisse as Shauna in the ‘Yellowjackets’ season 3 finale.

Darko Sikman/Paramount+

The *Yellowjackets* season 3 finale was significant in several ways, though it was most notable for providing clarity about the terrifying sequence that opened its pilot episode, which saw a faceless girl, a.k.a. Pit Girl, chased through the woods and subsequently consumed by the survivors, led by a mysterious Antler Queen. As we learn in the episode, the Pit Girl was Mari (Alexa Barajas), while the Antler Queen was none other than Shauna (Sophie Nélisse).

In the present-day timeline, this reveal casts a large shadow over adult Shauna (Melanie Lynskey), who’s abandoned by husband Jeff (Warren Cole) and daughter Callie (Sarah Desjardins). Jeff and Callie’s departure comes after Callie admits that she accidentally killed adult Lottie (Simone Kessell), pushing her down a flight of stairs in a fit of rage.

Shauna is also feared by Taissa (Tawny Cypress) and Misty (Christina Ricci), who probably should be, what with Shauna journaling about how the thrill of the wilderness has been creeping back into her life. “The danger. The thrill. The person I was back then,” she narrates in the season 3 finale. “Not a wife or a mother. I was a warrior. I was a fucking queen. I let all of it slip away from me. It’s time to start taking it back.”

In the ‘90s timeline, Nat (Sophie Thatcher) defies Shauna by using the satellite phone to call for help. In the final moments, a voice answers her call, signaling that the Yellowjackets time in the wilderness may be coming to an end.

Watch Melanie Lynskey and Christina Ricci recap 'Yellowjackets' seasons 1 and 2

Liv Hewson talks filming 'very emotional' 'Yellowjackets' episode

Will season 4 of Yellowjackets leave the wilderness?

Sophie Thatcher as Nat in the ‘Yellowjackets’ season 3 finale.

The end of season 3, in which Nat seems to set their rescue in motion, implies that the show’s ‘90s timeline may soon follow the survivors back in the real world. Co-showrunners Lyle, Nickerson, and Jonathan Lisco chatted about this possibility with EW following the finale.

“[They’re] not out of the woods yet, both literally and proverbially, but as a child of the ‘90s, we have not actually gotten to explore the ‘90s in a real way,” said Lyle. “And I think that putting them back home at some point in a ‘90s timeline and getting to fully immerse ourselves in that time period is something I’m really looking forward to.”

Lisco added, “If and when we get them back to civilization, you could say, ‘Oh, okay, there’s no wilderness storyline,’ but there’s still so much real estate between how these young people will find themselves dealing and coping to where they get to in the adult storyline. And so to me, that’s endlessly fascinating. Although the literal wilderness will have evaporated potentially, I think that the wilderness will still be very much with us and it’ll be a different kind of wilderness.”

What will season 4 of Yellowjackets be about?

Tawny Cypress as Taissa and Christina Ricci as Misty in the ‘Yellowjackets’ season 3 finale.

Darko Sikman/Paramount+

“As the survivors race to bury their sins before rescue arrives and an old flame roars back into town with plans of her own, turns out not every homecoming is a joyous one, and this one’s going to sting,” reads the official season 4 synopsis.

The season’s first teaser, released in August 2026, highlights news footage about the Yellowjackets’ rescue, meaning the final episodes will likely explore their departure from the wilderness — and the divisions the prospect of rescue creates among the survivors. The present-day timeline seems poised for a similar conflict, with Taissa and Misty pitted against Shauna, who appears to be embracing the ruthless Antler Queen she became in the wilderness.

“The worst of what we went through, [Shauna] fueled it,” Tai says in the season 3 finale. “She thrived on it. I forgot that for the longest time. But I can’t anymore. If we keep letting this slide, she’s gonna end up being the last one standing. And I don’t want that. Do you?”****“No,” says Misty, “I definitively do not.”

Speaking with EW, Lyle explained how the showrunners have long seen the ‘90s and present-day storylines as “crossing paths around this point.” She said, “So it is very much a shift where in the past, they are going to be reentering society, whereas in the present, they are starting to leave their societal lives behind in a pretty significant way.”

“I think that the wilderness certainly is invading our adult characters lives maybe even more dramatically, but it’s a difficult thing to leave behind for our teen characters as well,” added Lisco.

Who’s in the Yellowjackets season 4 cast?

Liv Hewson as Van in the ‘Yellowjackets’ season 3 finale.

Darko Sikman/Paramount+ with SHOWTIME

*Yellowjackets* has proven that being dead is no impediment to returning. And, as Steven Krueger, who played Coach Ben, told EW following his character’s death, “I think we’ve learned in this show that even when a character dies, that’s not necessarily the last time you’re going to see their face.”

He added, “So while I don’t know about any certain plans, I would not be surprised to see good old coach Ben pop up in either a flashback or maybe even a ghostie-type sequence.”

So far, the confirmed cast for season 4 includes Melanie Lynskey, Christina Ricci, Tawny Cypress, Sophie Nélisse, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sophie Thatcher, Samantha Hanratty, Courtney Eaton, Liv Hewson, Warren Kole, Kevin Alves, Sarah Desjardins, Nia Sondaya, Jenna Burgess, and Hilary Swank.

New cast members reportedly include ‘80s icon Molly Ringwald (*Feud*) and Oscar nominee June Squibb (*Thelma*). While Paramount has yet to officially confirm their casting, Alves, who plays teenage Travis, said in a June 2026 interview that both had been on set.

“They’ve integrated so well, and they feed off each other,” he said. “I’ve been a June Squibb fan forever and Molly is such an icon. I did get to say hi to Molly, and Molly’s just been so incredible to everyone.”

Is there a Yellowjackets season 4 release date?

Warren Kole as Jeff and Sarah Desjardins as Callie in the ‘Yellowjackets’ season 3 finale.

Kailey Schwerman/Paramount+ with SHOWTIME

*Yellowjackets* season 4 premieres on Friday, Nov. 20.**

Where can I watch Yellowjackets?

*Yellowjackets* is available to stream on Paramount+.

Original Article on Source

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