Who Is “The Valya” In Constellation (& Why Does Alice Keeps Seeing Them)?

Warning! Contains major spoilers for Constellation’s episode 5.

Constellation‘s episode 5 introduces a new — seemingly supernatural — character called “The Valya,” but does not reveal their true identity. Merging quantum physics concepts with the parallel universe trope, Apple TV+’s Constellation presents a compelling sci-fi drama where nearly every main character is an unreliable narrator. While the show’s central mystery revolves around how the main character, Jo, will find her way back to her original universe after swapping places with her alternate universe counterpart, episode 5 introduces another mystery revolving around a character named “Valya.“

This new mystery likely ties into Jo’s quest to find the truth about what is happening to her. Owing to this, it will be instrumental to unravel the layers of how Henry’s Cal experiment is distorting the Constellation characters’ perception and reality. However, even though the show will take its time to reveal who “The Valya” is, episode 5 and some early installments of the season might have already hinted at the significance and identity of the mysterious character.

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The Valya Could Be Jo Or Irena’s Alternate Version In Constellation

Many clues confirm that Valya was Irena’s parallel universe counterpart

In Constellation‘s episode 5, Alice draws a picture of a dead cosmonaut floating in space and calls her “The Valya.” Since Jo also saw a dead USSR cosmonaut in space, she suspects Alice somehow heard about it on the news and drew the same cosmonaut on paper. However, when Alice denies hearing anything on the news, Jo suspects that Alice might be seeing the same dead cosmonaut she saw in space. While Constellation has not yet revealed who the dead cosmonaut is, two possibilities seem to exist: the Valya (or the dead cosmonaut) is Jo or Irena’s alternate self.

Many details in Constellation suggest that Jo’s alternate self is dead. For instance, Alice gets a vision of the alternate universe where she finds herself in her mother’s universe. This could mean that the dead cosmonaut was Jo herself. However, given how the cosmonaut was wearing a USSR uniform, it seems likely Valya is Irena’s parallel universe counterpart. In a blink-or-miss moment from an early episode of Constellation, Henry also refers to Irena as Valya before he finds himself holding a dead body in his arms, hinting that Irena’s alternate version was named Valya, who died in space.

Why The Valya Is Communicating With Alice

The Valya’s appearance is a consequence of quantum entanglement

Valya’s reason for contacting Alice remains unknown, but her appearance has a lot to do with the quantum entanglement between the two alternate universes. The CAL experiment broke the fabric of space and time, which caused two alternate universes to converge. Owing to this, despite being dead, Valya, like Alice and Henry’s alternate versions, is traversing the boundary separating the two universes and emerging before many characters experiencing the quantum entanglement in Constellation.

Constellation

Constellation is a sci-fi psychological thriller written and created by Peter Harness for Apple TV+. After facing a crisis in space, Astronaut Jo returns to Earth only to discover nothing is quite the same – and that her sanity may be slowly slipping from her grasp.

Cast

Noomi Rapace , Jonathan Banks , James D’Arcy , Lenn Kudrjawizki , William Catlett , barbara sukowa , Carole Weyers

Release Date

February 21, 2024

Seasons

1

Streaming Service(s)

Apple TV+

Writers

Peter Harness

Directors

michelle maclaren

Showrunner

Peter Harness

Creator(s)

Peter Harness