TV Why Rosie O'Donnell is credited in Russian Doll season 2 Hint: listen very closely in those subway scenes. By Lauren Huff Lauren Huff Lauren Huff is a writer at Entertainment Weekly with over a decade of experience covering all facets of the entertainment industry. After graduating with honors from the University of Texas at Austin (Hook 'em, Horns!), Lauren wrote about film, television, awards season, music, and more for the likes of The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline Hollywood, Us Weekly, Awards Circuit, and others before landing at EW in May 2019. EW's editorial guidelines Published on April 20, 2022 08:00PM EDT Warning: This article contains spoilers about season 2 of Russian Doll. As viewers watch Russian Doll season 2, they might notice a familiar name in the credits. Comedian Rosie O'Donnell is credited throughout the second season as a guest star, but she never actually appears on screen. So, what exactly is her role? "She's the subway announcer. She's the, 'Next stop, this is Astor Place. Next stop, 14th street,'" series co-creator and star Natasha Lyonne tells EW for our latest cover story. Much of the second season takes place at New York City's subway, which serves as a waystation for Nadia (Lyonne) and Alan (Charlie Barnett) to travel through time. For Lyonne, it was important that whoever did the voice work sound like a real New Yorker. "It was very generous of [O'Donnell]. I just texted her, because we knew we wanted a real New York accent. We were sort of running down the line, we're like, 'Rosie Perez, Rosie… Mike Rappaport. Who's doing this part?' And so I texted Rosie, and she just would start sending me these little voice memos," Lyonne recalls. In addition to Lyonne and Barnett (and the vocal work of O'Donnell), the second season features series newcomers Annie Murphy, Sharlto Copley, and Carolyn Michelle Smith, and the return of Greta Lee's Maxine and Chloë Sevigny as Nadia's mom, Nora. Lyonne, who created the show with Amy Poehler and Leslye Headland, says she definitely felt the pressure making season 2 after the Emmy-winning first season did so well. "It felt like [the audience] really received it quite emotionally, and they really understood the jokes and what we were trying to say. It was very moving, because I personally had never felt so exposed," she says. "I really took it as a way of them saying, 'It's okay to dive even deeper and take a bigger swing,' and I wanted to try my best to do that." All seven episodes of Russian Doll season 2 are available on Netflix now. Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more. Related content: Time Travel Guides: Russian Doll stars Natasha Lyonne and Charlie Barnett unpack season 2 Natasha Lyonne is a 'time prisoner' in trippy trailer for Russian Doll season 2 Natasha Lyonne teases a 'wild ride' in first look at Russian Doll season 2: 'It is deeply off-the-wall'