‘Orange Is the New Black’ Star Dascha Polanco Reveals If She’ll Return for Sequel

Dascha Polanco is hanging up her prison uniform for good, and she apparently has no intention of putting it back on for a potential Orange Is the New Black sequel.

The actress, who portrays inmate Dayanara “Daya” Diaz, recently opened up to Digital Spy about the upcoming seventh and final season and whether or not she’d be up to return for the rumored sequel series that Lionsgate is eyeing, revealing that she is prepared to officially say goodbye to her character.

“I know that season seven is the end for me,” Polanco told the outlet. “The ending has been bittersweet – every day when I went to set, I tried to enjoy the time. I tried to reflect on everything that has happened over the last six years.”

“It’s exciting to see what’s coming next for me as an actress and an artist,” she added. “But for Dayanara, I think she has had a great season, and we’ll definitely see a different facet of her character. I’m excited for the audience to enjoy it for the last time.”

After it had been revealed in October that Season 7 would be the last for the popular Netflix original, which has been credited with laying the groundwork for the streamer’s original content, reports quickly surfaced that Lionsgate TV Group had been in contact with series creator Jenji Kohan about a potential sequel.

“We’re really proud of the long run that Orange Is the New Black had,” Lionsgate TV Group chairman Kevin Beggs told The Hollywood Reporter in November. “It remains one of Netflix’s most-watched shows. We’re ending on a high note. Keep in mind we own that series and will be distributing it for years to come. We’re already in discussions and, when the timing is right, we’ll talk further with Jenji about a potential sequel.”

Prior to that, OITNB executive producer Tara Herrmann had told the outlet in July that the OITNB writers have considered potential spin-off series centering on Larry Bloom (Jason Biggs) and Polly Harper (Maria Dizzia) or Cal and Carol Chapman (Deborah Rush).

However, despite the buzz, there currently doesn’t seem to be any set in stone plans for Orange Is the New Black to live on following its conclusion next month.

As for what fans can expect out of the final batch of episodes, Polanco stated that fans will see “many people adjusting outside of prison, and Daya’s mother is outside of prison, so we will see how she’s adapting to life outside, and how different it is with each person’s turn on the outside.”

Orange Is the New Black Season 7 premieres on Netflix on Friday, July 26. Seasons 1-6 are currently available for streaming.