Orange is the New Black fan favourites missing from Season 6
This post contains cast spoilers for Orange is the New Black Season 6.
If you’re not up for spoilers, check out our review here.
Orange is the New Black has massively trimmed its cast for its latest season, which debuted on Netflix today.
A ton of fan favourite characters have been offed from the show to make way for a rebooted cast.
The show draws on an in-universe explanation for the cull, with the closure of the Litchfield minimum security prison at the end of Season 5 seeing the inmates relocated elsewhere across the country.
While the show’s main characters mostly end up in the Maximum Security facility in Litchfield, not everyone is so lucky.
One of the primary missing fan favourites is Big Boo (Lea DeLaria), who has only one short cameo in the new season in a different prison.
Big Boo (Lea DeLaria) and Yoga Jones (Constance Shulman) failed to make it over to Max
The butch lesbian character is revealed to have been transferred to FDC Cleveland in the 30-second appearance, alongside Skinhead Helen (Francesca Curran).
The brief scene is the character’s only look-in, despite her pivotal comedic role in previous seasons.
Other comedic characters including Yoga Jones (Constance Shulman) and Chang (Lori Tan Chinn) are also nowhere to be seen following the end of Season 5, though Chang is confirmed to be incarcerated elsewhere following her brief run to freedom.
Chang (Lori Tan Chinn) is not in Season 6
Maritza Ramos (Diane Guerrero) is also missing from the season, and her absence is referenced multiple times by her BFF Flaca (Marisol Gonzales) – who struggles to get by without her.
Maritza Ramos (Diane Guerrero) is missing
The show’s only Muslim character Alison Abdullah (Amanda Stephen) is also missing, as is Brook Soso (Kimiko Glenn).
Bog Boo, Yoga Jones and Soso are all gone
Alison Abdullah (Amanda Stephen, far right) is missing
Sophia Burset (Laverne Cox) does appear in the new season, but continues to have a relatively reduced role.
Sophia Burset (Laverne Cox) is back – but not in a major role
All of them have a likely better fate than Suzanne’s ex-girlfriend Maureen Kukudio (Emily Althaus), who is confirmed to have died off-screen after being shown in a deteriorating state during the fifth season following a fight.
Maureen Kukudio (Emily Althaus)
A lot of fans have wondered about the status of Alex Vause (Laura Prepon) on the show… with good reason. The character’s fate is pivotal to the sixth season.
Alex Vause (Laura Prepon)
Laverne Cox recently branched out into music – releasing her first single and music video.
Cox dropped RuPaulesque track Beat for the Gods, which also takes it inspiration from the New York drag and ballroom scene.
