‘Arcane’ on Netflix: How Season 2’s CaitVi kiss came together

When is a kiss not just a kiss? Season 2 of Netflix’s “Arcane” delivers a long-awaited payoff between two characters with such a deep emotional bond it inspired a “Bennifer”-style portmanteau: CaitVi. Co-executive producer Amanda Overton, who wrote the saga-defining scene, explains that Vi (voiced by Hailee Steinfeld) has “lost everyone she loved,” and it’s during a moment of fear and honesty that she tells Caitlyn (voiced by Katie Leung), “Everyone in my life has changed. Promise me you won’t change.” Caitlyn reacts by inching closer, brushing her finger gently against Vi’s face before their lips meet in a soft, breathless kiss. “I won’t.” The enduring portrait comes at a cost. “We had Vi ask this impossible question at the wrong time, but she’s so vulnerable and desperate,” notes Overton. “Caitlyn lies at this moment because she thinks that’s what Vi needs to hear.” Her bold choice blooms into Vi returning the embrace. “We worked with Christelle [Abgrall], the director, to create the passion and longing they had for each other that was built up over the season. Because it was their first kiss we needed it to be romantic in every way.” See, even lies can be romantic.