Stephanie Nur Details Aaliyah’s Shocking ‘Lioness’ Return

The Lioness Season 3 finale delivered a truly jaw-dropping closing scene, featuring Stephanie Nur reprising her role as Aaliyah Amrohi. Last we saw Aaliyah in the Season 1 finale, she was left despondent after her father, a Dubai billionaire with ties to terrorism, and fiancé, were both murdered by Cruz (Laysla De Oliveira), whom Aaliyah had taken under her wing and fallen in love with under false pretenses.

All throughout Season 3, the Lioness team was in a tailspin trying to rescue Joe McNamara (Zoe Saldaña) from her captors and discover the nation state or terrorist group responsible for such a bold abduction on U.S. soil. However, no one suspected Aaliyah, whose vendetta against the team was truly personal.

Even Nur was surprised to hear of Aaliyah’s impending return when she got a call from creator Taylor Sheridan. “I got a message that Taylor wanted to have a conversation with me, and then when we got on the phone, I was completely not expecting this,” she told TV Insider. “The first time we’d worked together, I was on 1883, and he does so many shows, and I know he uses actors again, so when he called, I truly thought it was perhaps about something else.”

Like many fans, though, she was delighted to learn what the call was really about. “I was very surprised as well that Aaliyah was back, very honored, and of course, very happy because I’m super attached to her, and she resonated with so many people.”

Nur had been keeping tabs on Lioness even after Aaliyah didn’t return on its second season. “I loved watching it. Taylor is such a great writer. All of those great lines that women can say… I loved watching where it all went and all of the directions,” she said. However, enough time had passed that she’d given up on reprising the role. “When the story continues without you, you just assume that they’ve gone in a different direction, and that’s usually how shows go,” she remembered. “When the call came, because these three years had passed, it just wasn’t on the forefront of my expectations.”

Before learning of Aaliyah’s return, Nur said she’d been imagining what might be in store for the character, after she was left so heartbroken and betrayed by Cruz. “After we finished [and] wrapped the first season, I was having dreams as Aaliyah in certain scenarios. It stayed with me for sure, what betrayal does to a person, to erode at some kind of innocence that they’ve previously possessed. I definitely have always imagined what happened to her and what was the reaction in different scenarios.”

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So, when she got the chance to play an Aaliyah whose innocence has been shed, and she’s hellbent on revenge against the Lioness crew, she relished it, even if it was just for a matter of moments in the Season 3 finale (at least, so far).

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“It was very cathartic. I do care about her, as a performer who, it’s such a big part for me, and it had such a big resonance with people. I was very attached to her, so I love that she gets to come back [this way]. It was just so poignant and powerful and important, and I was honored to have her live that way,” Nur said.

When asked if she hopes that she’ll get to lean into that even more with a potential Season 4, Nur was a definite yes: “I can’t speak out of turn here because we’ve not gotten a renewal, but of course, I would. Selfishly, I care about her, so I want her to have the best outcome that she can have, and I’m sure Taylor will write that, whatever it is.”

One would imagine the potential for the future of the show to involve a showdown between Aaliyah and Cruz, and Nur is delighted at that prospect. “I mean, what happens to somebody who starts out as very innocent and naive about the world and love, perhaps, but also possesses a depth and a sensitivity, and then be betrayed and hurt?” she asked. “And how that changes the dynamic of not only you and other people in your world but just in your personality and how you move through the world? Every woman wants a redemption story. To get even and come back and who knows?! Love and hate are emotions that are separated by a very thin line.”

As for how she feels about the way Aaliyah was brought back into the fold, after being mentioned briefly at times throughout by Cruz, the actress said it was all the more powerful as a result of that story shape.

“That’s what Taylor is so good at, in all of his shows. He’ll plant seeds and bring them back later in unexpected ways. It’s never on the nose. It’s always very beautifully done, almost Shakespearean,” Nur said.

Lioness, Streaming Now, Paramount+