Ella Purnell defends Arcane’s Jinx as she explains why she doesn’t see her as a baddie

(Image credit: Netflix)

Jinx has done a lot of unquestionably bad things in Arcane. She’s stolen Hextech, forged weapons, kidnapped people, and well… committed murder, but Ella Purnell, who voices the character, isn’t so keen on people calling her a villain.

The Fallout star recently appeared on the first episode of Afterglow, a new Q&A-style companion show that sees the Netflix series’ actors and creatives chat about the biggest talking points from each episode. When asked whether or not she sees the blue-haired rebel as “a monster”, Purnell quipped: “There’s a monster in all of us, guys.

“God, she has so much to reckon with; she’s made so many mistakes and there’s so much insecurity and there’s so much guilt that just threatens to topple her,” she continued. “You know, she was also raised by Silco. She killed both her dads. I think she’s just really, really struggling and really lost. That self-hatred that she has, that can be very destabilizing. It’s very hard to know who you really are when you’re just listening to voices. I don’t think she’s a monster, I feel sorry for her.”

In the first three episodes of Arcane season 2, which are available to stream now on Netflix, Jinx seems unsure of what to do next in the wake of her attack on the Piltover Council, slinking about the undercity as Zaunites start looking to her as a symbol of freedom. With Silco gone, how can she liberate her people from a now-vengeful Topside?

Elsewhere, we see Vi (Hailee Steinfeld) forced to face up to the fact that her sister Powder, as Jinx was once known, might be too far gone.

Ensure you never miss an episode with our Arcane season 2 release schedule. For more, check out our guide to the best Netflix shows for some viewing inspiration.