Dascha Polanco Set The Record Straight About Daya In The ‘OITNB’ Finale

Fans had questions about this character’s ending on Orange Is The New Black. Dascha Polanco revealed Daya’s fate in the OITNB finale. The final season of the popular Netflix series was a rollercoaster ride of emotions. The finale left some fans frustrated and some content as we left Litchfield for the last time.

With a huge ensemble of actors, there were a number of stories that had an unsatisfying but honest, end. Daya’s was one such narrative that was left fairly open-ended. At least, until Polanco offered some clarity for fans on Twitter. Reader beware: There are many spoilers ahead!

When the series began, Daya was uninterested in the politics of Litchfield prison and remained on the sidelines. But as the seasons progressed, she became much more entrenched in the volatile political landscape. In the series finale, Daya is seen fighting with her mother Aleida (Elizabeth Rodriguez) over who will have the most control over the prison. Aledia becomes so enraged with Daya that she punches her in the throat and strangles her. The last image of Daya audiences see is the woman collapsed to the ground.

https://twitter.com/wokeaesthetic/status/1155723259020763137

In her tweets following the show, Polanco shared that she believed Daya had died during the violent altercation. But after speaking with writers, it was revealed to her that Daya had, in fact, survived. “They made it very clear to me that I don’t die,” Polanco shared with The Hollywood Reporter. But with this clarity, it stills does not mean a happy ending whatsoever for the inmate who will be serving life in prison.

Polanco noted that Daya’s transformation throughout the show is a very real product of the complicated prison system that exists in the country, writing, “Her story is the product of a cycle that we, as a community, need to intervene in. If we really had a true justice system where it’s set up for incarcerated individuals to succeed, we would see less of this type of evolution.” For fans, this isn’t a happy ending, but it does offer some finality to one of the show’s transformative characters.