The '13 Reasons Why' star also reveals what she hopes to see in season three of the hit Netflix show.
*Spoilers ahead for 13 Reasons Why season two*
Season two of 13 Reasons Why is streaming now on Netflix, but fans who have already binge-watched the season can't seem to stop talking about the major cliffhangers from that controversial finale!
Some of the biggest bombshells were the outcome of Bryce's (Justin Prentice) sexual assault trial, and Jessica's (Alisha Boe) decision to get back together with Justin (Brandon Flynn) after watching her cope with the aftermath of that assault throughout the season.
"That is a very complicated question because I, as Alisha, was very upset because I didn't want her to go back [to Justin]," Boe admitted to ET at the Vanity Fair x Max Mara Celebration of Women in Film event on Tuesday.
If you'll recall, in season one, Justin witnessed Bryce assaulting Jessica at a house party and failed to prevent it. After leaving town, he returns in season two on a mission to make amends with his ex -- and files a police report with Jessica against Bryce. We also see Justin on the path to sobriety after struggling with a heroin addiction.
"It kind of is toxic in a way, but then you see the redemption Justin has and then you can't judge Jessica for making her own decisions," she explained.
"She's finally coming to terms with her sexuality again and feeling like her body is her own again. So, at first I read it and I was really angry. But then I realized I was Alisha and I was judging Jessica. And then I thought, Who am I to judge Jessica?"
The 21-year-old actress also says she hopes the characters will see more repercussions for their actions in season three, which Netflix announced will go into production this fall and be released in 2019.
And like Prentice told ET last month, Alisha was also angered by the outcome of Bryce's sexual assault trial -- just three months’ probation -- while Justin, an accessory to rape, earned himself six months’ probation.
"It's supposed to piss you off," she said. "But the sad truth is that it happens way more often than you think. When you have a rich white guy going against a black popular cheerleader, there's race elements to it, there's privilege... it's just a classist thing," she added. "It just goes back to privilege, and that's what happens, and we drew from the Brock Turner case and Brock Turner got to walk away with a slap on his wrist."
Boe hopes the show will trigger change.
"Just think about all the real women it's [sexual assault] actually happened to and be more enraged and use your voice to do something and make the change and shift the culture."
As for season three, the actress would love to see the aftermath of male sexual assault explored following Tyler's (Devin Druid) graphic sodomy scene.
"I think Tyler's development character-wise is going to be incredibly interesting; it's always been one of my favorite story lines because it's so interesting," she said. "And there's so many layers to it and of course it's gonna be inevitable that we're gonna catch up with Tyler in the aftermath, and I feel like especially for a male being sexually assaulted on a popular TV show and then being able to show him trying to recover from that will help a lot of people."
She also has a few hopes for Jessica.
"I hope that she will empower other girls around her because there are so many other people in the school that have been harassed or assaulted by Bryce or other jocks, so I hope she gets empowered by that and helps those girls."
Of course, one thing we won't see in season three is Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford).
"It's strange, I don't even know how it's gonna be going back without her," Boe admitted. "I love her so much and I've learned so much from her and I look up to her so much... she is so, so, supremely talented."
See what Langford told ET about her departure from the show -- and whether we will see her in flashback form at all -- in the video below.
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