‘DC’s Stargirl’: Yvette Monreal Discusses Yolanda’s Momentous Decisions

By the end of this week’s episode of DC’s Stargirl, everything has changed for Yolanda Montez (Yvette Monreal). Spoilers past this point, but after a battle with what seems to be returning villain Brainwave (Christopher James Baker), Yolanda has given up on being Wildcat, quit the Justice Society of America (JSA) and even left her job at the local diner.

“I feel like she needed to do this for herself, to really get a clear perspective on what she wanted to do, because she was fighting it the whole time, the whole first few episodes,” Monreal told Decider.

To find out more about Yolanda’s big decision(s), where she’s headed next, and what it was like filming those intensely emotional scenes, read on.

Decider: Both last season and this one, you’ve been tasked with arguably the most emotionally intense episodes of the show. What has that experience been like?

Yvette Monreal: I mean it was definitely a little bit draining for me because when I have those emotional scenes, I like to give it my all, you know? But the payoff at the end of the day is so worth it, just being like, the emotion’s so strong and my truth, and the genuineness of it all, it’s all real emotions. So yeah, it takes a little toll on me, but I know the reward is so much greater, so it’s worth it all.

We’ve seen a little bit of her in the background across the season, she’s been dealing with this Brainwave stuff on her own… What did they tell you in advance, so you could potentially play towards this episode?

All they did was tell me that I was going to really be struggling with Henry’s death and Brainwave’s death… I did know I was going to be exploring my religion as much as my other season. They did tell me that you’re going to be talking with a priest, but the amount of it, it’s a lot. It’s in my arc a lot, which I actually appreciate because you don’t really see that being explored in shows, and you know it gives a different perspective on my culture. I’m Catholic myself, so it was pretty awesome. It was a wonderful surprise.

As audiences we’re kind of trained to watch this sort of thing and go, “Oops, that priest is evil. Bad things are going on in that church.” That’s not what’s happening here at all. So what was that experience like, to really go deep into the religion, and go honestly into the religion?

I thought it was quite beautiful. It actually made me, Yvette, go deeper into my religion because I did grow up Catholic, but I started getting older and things started happening at work and everything and I didn’t practice it as much. But this actually helped me dive back into it, which I really enjoyed. But yeah, you’re right, usually you see a priest and something evil happens, and sometimes it’s associated with bad things that happen, but this is kind of my saving grace… You know, this is Yolanda’s comfort zone, and she’s found a way to, when she’s feeling down or she needs someone to talk to, this is very therapeutic for her. She feels like she has something to go to now.

Even though it’s not great news for Yolanda, it was very fun as a viewer to see Christopher James Baker and Jake Austin Walker back on the show. What was it like having them on set for this episode?

That was so fun… Jake is a blast. He’s such a great partner to work with, and so is Christopher. They’re such a good time and they made the scary parts less scary because they’re just funny and awesome to be on set with.

The Brainwave attack scene in the church, I got to see a little bit of the unedited footage of you in the rig, which was a lot of fun. What was that experience like shooting that scene in particular?

Well, there was a lot of emotion there. We were going really big with it, kind of going into the emotional route with it where… We tried a bunch of things with it, so it was fun to be on the wires and I love doing stunts. Hopefully one day I can just do all my stunts by myself… And acting with Chris, he’s so good. He keeps me on my toes. It was a good time. The emotions… When I do do emotional scenes, though, it is a little draining so that was the only thing I would say I needed to be mindful of because I didn’t want to be flat or anything.

A lot of the debate throughout the episode, which is a perennial for superhero shows and movies, is whether it is okay to kill, and if so, when? What’s your take on it?

My own take, Yvette’s take? Well, see, I’ve never thought about that. In my own opinion, I would never have the balls to kill anyone. I’ve woken up from dreams and been so scared because I’ve had dreams of leaving my sister in the car, and then she died, and I’m like, “Oh, what do I do?” It’s a stressful situation for me in my dreams, so I can’t even imagine. But in superhero land, I do think it’s okay to kill a villain if a villain is trying to take over the whole world and [get] rid [of] the whole population, so I personally, in superhero world, do think it’s okay to get rid of villains because they’re trying to cause harm; and if you don’t get rid of them, they will get rid of you. So in Yvette’s world, yes, I do think villains are an exception.

Fair enough. Jumping back into the middle of the episode, the young JSA seems to be at a crossroads here. And I know you guys are all friends in real life, so I’m curious what was it like filming that scene, where everybody’s sitting around really digging into each other, revealing each other’s secrets, because as a viewer it’s pretty intense to watch.

Everyone talks about that scene and everyone loves that scene so much, but when we were filming it, it was actually right after Christmas break and we went into the living room, that was the first scene we shot and we were all just… I mean, we don’t take it personally obviously, it’s our characters and we know that, but we were all just complimenting each other. Cameron [Gellman] would be like, “You did a good job!” and “That one, that was the take, that was it.” We all just compliment each other’s work so much, and we’re all there for each other. I feel like we’re all there to lift each other up ,so it’s actually a really awesome environment to be in because it just makes you that much more confident to do a better job. We love each other, and it shows.

Toward the end of the episode, Courtney does actually show up for Yolanda and helps her out in the church. Do you think Courtney  is someone she can depend on again, after this?

Well, I think she kind of showed up a little too late. Throughout the episode, she’s trying to really get through to Courtney, and Courtney doesn’t seem to be listening and that hurts Yolanda a lot because this is supposed to be her best friend, she needs this feeling of validation from someone, and she’s not even getting it from her. That does take a little toll on her, which is why Yolanda chooses to step out of the JSA. I don’t think it’s serving her anymore, and I think it took her a long time to realize that. I think she knew it in the back of her mind, and she didn’t want to admit it, but she has to let it go for her own mental health and for her own sanity.

She gives up a lot of things at the end of the episode. She gives up on Wildcat, she quits the diner… Do you think — well obviously you know where it’s going — but it sort of feels like this decision to cut herself off may not be the right direction to go in. What’s your take on it?

I feel like she needed to do this for herself, to really get a clear perspective on what she wanted to do, because she was fighting it the whole time, the whole first few episodes. It’s been that she’s committed, it’s really weighing on her, and she doesn’t know which way to go, what direction to lean on. She tries to lean on Courtney, she tries to come to the whole JSA as a group, and it doesn’t seem like she’s getting what she needs from them. So I think maybe it’s not a direction for her… Maybe she’s not going to walk alone forever, but this is definitely something that she needed to do for herself, just to get some clarity. It’s something that needed to happen.

There’s an open question at the end about what actually happened: was it Brainwave leaving a bit of himself inside of her, Eclipso, or just plain guilt. Do you have a theory on that, or will it be clarified later on?

It will be clarified later on, but as for now, she does think that it’s God’s punishment for what she did to Brainwave. She has all of these different emotions; she feels like she’s going crazy, she feels like it’s God’s punishment, she feels all this guilt, which is why I said … her stepping away is something that she needed to do for herself. Whether it be the endgame or not, it’s something that is really taking a toll on her, so she needs to step away.

What, if anything, can you tease about Yolanda’s journey in the back half of the season?

Let’s just say that Eclipso and the JSA… The JSA is still in the back of her mind and I think she does miss them. That’s her newfound family, and she’s not just going to forget about them.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

DC’s Stargirl airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on The CW.

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