It’s hard to describe exactly what genre Diarra From Detroit fits in, and believe me, that’s a good thing. The series includes mystery, comedy and crime all had a place, giving creator and star Diarra Kilpatrick room to send her characters into unfamiliar territory, leaving audiences guessing where the story will go next.

Following its move from BET+ to Paramount+, the series returns with a larger canvas and new challenges for Diarra Brickland and the people in her orbit. In addition to Kilpatrick, returning cast members include Bryan Terrell Clark, DomiNque Perry, Jon Chaffin, Shannon Wallace and Phylicia Rashad, while Season 2 also features an impressive lineup of guest stars. Morris Chestnut reprises his role alongside Glynn Turman, Bokeem Woodbine, Amber Riley, Lil Rel Howery, Lovie Simone, Shoniqua Shandai, Nicco Annan, Skilla Baby, Icewear Vezzo, Chris “CP” Powell and Jude Demorest.

After spending Season 1 introducing viewers to Diarra’s world, Kilpatrick now has an opportunity to push her lead character into new situations while exploring questions beyond solving the latest case. Chaffin, whose portrayal of Danger became a fan favorite, also takes on material revealing another side of the character after revelations from the first season turned his life upside down.

Away from the cameras, both actors describe an environment built on trust, humor and collaboration, something they believe carries over into every episode. “It’s always really fun on set,” Chaffin says, and having spent much of the summer introducing Season 2 to audiences through an extensive promo run, they’ve also had a chance to see firsthand how the show’s fan base has continued to grow.

Shortly after the show’s premiere, ESSENCE caught up with Kilpatrick and Chaffin to discuss expanding the world of Diarra From Detroit, developing their characters beyond the first season, and why every episode feels like its own movie.

ESSENCE: Comic-Con, Food Trucks, Jimmy Kimmel—you have been everywhere the past couple of months, Diarra. How amazing has the press run been for season two?

Diarra Kilpatrick: It’s really exciting. I mean, we both come from the theater where it’s like you do the performance and then you see the audience kind of right away. So, it’s really nice to come face to face with the audience of the show. People have been so lovely and generous, and then it’s also nice to just be out and be introduced to a new audience altogether and kind of welcome them into our world as well.

Jon, what are you most excited about exploring this season?

Jon Chaffin: Just his internal life. I think that after season one, the news that he didn’t commit this crime and his whole life, his adult life has been based off of this lie that was told to him by Velvet. And now he’s trying to pick up the pieces of his life in season two, and he’s trying to rediscover who he is. And I think that’s why we find him in a different part of Michigan at the beginning of this season, because he’s really just trying to find out where he is in this world and how he fits in and who he is. So it was really fun to explore his internal life and also get to play in the world that he gets to play in this season because he’s definitely in a different element. I’ll put it like that.

After the response of season one, did you feel any pressure going into season two? Or did it give you more freedom creatively to write what you wanted to?

DK: No, it felt more like an opportunity. And I think we learned this season just how big the sandbox is of this world. It really can support almost anything. I was the little girl late at night who wouldn’t go to bed because I had to finish my Nancy Drew novel, and then wanted to go to the store and get another one that put her into a different case in a different world. And we’re able to do that same thing where every season is like a different book and we can explore such fun terrain. And this time we’re in that action adventure space, that Indiana Jones space. It felt like nothing but blue sky and open opportunity story-wise.

What did you enjoy the most about playing a character in this show where the story can go from funny to serious so quickly?

JC: It’s fun because it’s a tennis match, you know what I’m saying? And you’re trying to keep the ball over the net. Diarra is a comedic genius. DomiNque is a comedic genius. Brian Terrell Clark is a comedic genius. And I just kind of get to step in and do my thing every now and again and let them really shine, and handle that comedic side of it. But it’s fun to be able to just play in this world with these characters and tell this story because you don’t really know where it’s going—and you’re finding out in real time. We were getting scripts maybe a week or two before we shoot, and I’m like, “Oh wow, this is what Danger’s doing? Okay. Thank God I have a theater background and I can dive into the work a little bit more easily.” But, it’s a lot of fun just playing this guy and being able to show the different sides of a Black man because we don’t always get that opportunity. A lot of times it’s one note; this is who he is, but we really get to go inside the heart and the mind of Danger.

DK: Jon is being humble. I think every episode is kind of its own movie and all of the actors, and Jon especially, it’s like we want to make sure that they can hold that closeup, that they can hold that movie. And Jon gets to do his own Western this season, and then he’s in an action movie in an episode. All of our actors really do bring just this gravitas, this presence, because we like to think of each episode as a movie.

I spoke to Bryan and DomiNque earlier, and I brought up the family vibe that I get from you all. What is the atmosphere like on set?

JC: [Diarra’s] going to break out in a song. Every time there’s a new setup, she’s singing something.

DK:  Every time I turn the camera around, I have to sing.

JC: It’s like this all the time on set. If you’re spending 14, 15, 16 hours a day with people, you want to enjoy the people that you’re working with. And everybody is bringing their own personality and it’s a big soup where the ingredients just work and it just tastes so good at the end. And it’s so much fun. I’m not the singing type, but I’ll let Diarra and Bryan handle that.

DK: He’ll get there. (Laughs.) Yes, [Method Man] was always rapping. Jon’s always looking cool. I think I’ve heard other people say this before and I know that they’re lying, but this is true. Everybody’s really kind. So, we have a lot of fun and we all feel really safe. And I remember we were shooting a scene with Bokeem [Woodbine] one time. We were around a table all day. And I remember him just being like, “Wow, this is really fun. We wouldn’t be able to do this on any other set.” Just sitting around a table together all day. And I realized then that I was taking for granted how high the vibes were.

Diarra, is there anything in specific that you wanted to do differently with your character this season?

DK: I just wanted to keep exploring who she was. So basically now she’s accepting that there’s this new part of her that she likes being a P.I. She likes the thrill of it all, but then that has to coexist with the woman that she is. She still has to make money. She still kind of wants a family and wants love. And so this season was really about figuring out how she owns the private detective side of her, but also maintains the woman that she is. And so it was really that push and pull. And right now she’s really thinking about having a baby. And that’s how Met the Man’s character comes into her world to offer her this opportunity to become a mother. And so that was the new part was to see that side of her.

Jon, you’re part of a show with a beautiful black cast, black creator, black crew, etc.—why do you think a show like this is important?

JC: I mean, when you look at the landscape of America right now, there’s so much division and voices are being silenced, especially our voices. And to be able to be a part of a show that’s led, created, and starring a Black woman, and being able to go through the lens of her life and see the world through her eyes, I think is necessary. I think it’s very necessary. We don’t have enough stories of that, and we don’t get to see enough of ourselves in these characters that are being offered right now. And it really is a gift. It’s a joy. I don’t tell you lightly. And I’m grateful because we have Diarra, we have Issa, we have Ava, we have Gina Prince-Bythewood, and it’s still not enough. We need more. We need more access and more accessibility. I think our story that we’re telling from our point of view is a human story. So everybody can relate to these characters, whether you’re white, Black, Asian, whatever. You have somebody in your life that is a little delulu.

DK: Who, me? (Laughs.)

JC: Yeah, just a little bit. You have somebody in your life that is going to protect you no matter at all costs. So I think that’s a real gift to be able to put that on display.

DK: I just want to add to that, if I might—I love what he was saying. I just think as a Black creator, it’s interesting because no matter what I do, I know it’s going to be political. I just know that. So, we lean into that in some ways, the entire story being this metaphor for a Black woman kind of putting a community on her back and solving crimes that the police are not able to or unwilling to take harder looks at. But I feel like the opportunity there is to have as much fun as humanly possible along the way. And that’s really what we tried to inject in this season was just this feeling of summer fun and adventure, and to just take us back to when we were kids and the summer just meant long days and ice cream.

That’s really, really the vibe that we hope pulls you back every Wednesday. We know we’re saying some heavier things in the background, but at the end of the day, we just want y’all to enjoy yourselves.

Read the original article on Essence.