‘Orange Is The New Black’ Season 3 Spoilers: Who Will Mary Steenburgen Play? 5 Theories About New 'Mother' Role

“Orange is the New Black” is welcoming a new mother to the mix when Season 3 of the original Netflix series returns – and she’ll be played by the Academy Award-winning actress Mary Steenburgen. The red carpet star made the announcement June 12 on Twitter, and you can bet fans are totally freaking out.

"Very excited to go to my first wardrobe fitting of OITNB! Will I be in orange or black?:)"

— Mary Steenburgen (@MarySteenburgen) June 12, 2014

You may remember Steenburgen from her appearances in “Step Brothers,” “The Help” and “Elf.” The actress has a history of playing mother figures, and it looks as if that trend will continue on "Orange is the New Black." TV Line is reporting that Steenburgen will be playing the mother of one “OITNB” character – but who? Well, if you're itching to speculate then you’ve come to the right place! We've got five theories below:

1. Could Steenburgen be mother to Tiffany “Pennsatucky" Doggett? We’ve yet to meet Doggett’s mom and currently any information regarding her family – besides her brother Donny – is unknown. Fans have become fascinated with the pious prisoner, so to get the chance to meet the woman who bore and raised Doggett would be pretty cool.

2. Nicolette “Nicky” Nichols is also an inmate at Litchfield who has remained quiet about her family. However, she did reveal that her mother is no longer in her life. Could Season 3 change that? We’d love to see Red, Nichol’s prison mom, and Steenburgen’s character in a showdown for Nicky’s love.

3. Or could Steenburgen be a mother to a nonprisoner? Fans have speculated that maybe the actress is taking on the role of John Bennett’s mom. With a child on the way it makes perfect sense that grandma would want to meet the woman carrying her soon-to-be grandbaby!

4. Carrie “Big Boo” Black is another inmate whose mother we’ve never heard about. For someone so outlandish it would be quite comical to see sweet, sincere Steenburgen as her mother.

5. Maybe Steenburgen will appear in “OITNB” as the mother to a relatively new character – perhaps Brook Soso? Seriously, someone needs to tell that little hippie to take a bath! And who better to do it than her mom?

Viewers of the show questioned whether or not Steenburgen would be a prisoner herself considering for two seasons now fans have watched mother/daughter relationships play out in the cells of Litchfield. But whatever character Steenburgen takes on, you can expect to meet her in episode 1, according to IMDB.

Who do you think Steenburgen could be the mother to? Sound off with your predictions in the comments section below.