This month Amazon Prime debuted Lena Waithe’s and Little Marvin’s Them: Covenant, which Amazon describes as a limited anthology series that explores terror in America. The first season subtitled, “Covenant,” centers on a Black family in the 1950s who moves from North Carolina to an all-White Los Angeles neighborhood during the period known as The Great Migration. The series stars Deborah Ayorinde, Shahadi Wright Joseph, Allison Pill, Melody Hurd, and Ashley Thomas.
We sat down with Deborah Ayorinde–who you may recognize from Marvel’s Luke Cage and Will Packard’s Girls Trip–to discuss Them: Covenant, as well as her character Lucky Emory and, of course, Ayorinde’s skincare routine. You know you want to know. Get into it below.
Fancy: How would you describe your swagher? What makes Deborah, Deborah?
Deborah: Oh, a question about me? What makes Deborah, Deborah? My spirit and my heart. You know, I feel like I’ve always been me. I’ve grown, I’ve evolved. I’ve always had the same spirit. The other day my aunt sent me photos of my younger self, and I sat a long time staring at old photos. So, yeah, it’s my big, unique spirit and my connection to God.
Fancy: Sounds like you are big on self-reflection and spirituality.
Deborah: Yeah. Like, I feel like that doesn’t really cover it, you know. My relationship with God is the most important thing to me, to say the least. And so, yeah, it’s the center of my life.
Fancy: Tell us about Them: Covenant series and your character, Lucky Emory.
Deborah: Lucky is layered; she is strong yet delicate. She’s regal. She is a mother; she is a wife. She is the backbone of her North Carolina Community. She is a woman that I could see myself being friends with today. She’s ahead of her time, you know. And when you meet her, in theory, she’s holding her head above water. She has experienced an unspeakable tragedy that moves her, and eventually inspires her family to move from North Carolina to Compton, California.
Fancy: So how were you cast for the role? Can you tell us about that?
Deborah: So I got three or four scripts. I was asked to put myself on tape as many actors do. And when I read it, I was immediately struck by Little Marvin’s beautiful writing and how honestly and carefully he created Lucky. So I was drawn in! The first script was written like poetry. And so I auditioned a couple of times and I sat down with Little Marvin, and we had a conversation for what was like an hour and a half. We could have gone longer than that had he not had a meeting afterward.
During the conversation, I felt like we had known each other for a really long time. Then we talked about Lucky’s journey; we just clicked. I felt like–especially after that meeting–”Where do I sign up?”, you know. “Where do I find out more?” But we had a few more talks after that. I
think I had to audition one more time to test. And, um, yeah, I got the role. I definitely got down and dirty and arrogant. Laughs
Fancy: That sounds like a lot of auditioning.
Deborah: Oh, yes!
Fancy: So are there any similarities between the Emorys and your own family?
Deborah: I would say that we’re very, very close. You know, very, very close. We love each other unconditionally and we’re chocolate, so that’s big! You know what I think was very interestingly important? A lot of times when you see Black families portrayed on screen–at least in the past–they, at times, looked nothing alike. They are starting to get it right now. The Emorys literally look like each other. Yeah, and I love that. So, the same thing with my family, we look like each other.
And we also would make decisions based on what our families thought about where they wanted to go, not based on what the world might say, you know. In my family, my parents and my elders named us by what they thought about what they saw for our lives. My character’s full name is Livia Emory, but her nickname is Lucky; it’s given to her by her family and the Carolina community, you know. It’s not based on the things she’s going through, but it’s based on how they see her. The same thing with Ruby. You know, there’s a beautiful scene where Lucky says to Ruby, “You know why are you my Ruby?” And she says, “Because I sparkle.” And then there’s the instance where Lucky says to Grace, “Grace, do you know why you are my Grace?” And Grace says, “Because when Daddy saw me, he said ‘Amen!’”
You know what I am saying? So it’s beautiful. It’s clear that Lucky and Henry name their children based on how they see them, not on how the world sees them. So that’s something that I’m thinking is very similar to my family and theirs.
Fancy: I love that. So now I have to ask, what is your skincare routine?
Deborah: I will put you on to it right now. I don’t know if this is gonna be groundbreaking, but after I wash my face, I take a block of ice and I run it over my face until it’s fully melted. After I get out of the shower, I use that same routine on my face. Of all the things that I do, that is like major, major, major key. I don’t know the science behind it, but that just keeps my pores so small and, as a result, keeps my skin looking vibrant. I’m also drinking my water, being positive, blocking stress, leaving stress, and minding my own business. That is my consistent skincare routine.
Fancy: I was waiting on you to say ”minding my own business” and then you ended up saying it at the end. (Laughs). Well, do you have any other upcoming projects that you want to share?
Deborah: Yeah. Right now I’m working on a project entitled Truth Be Told, starring Octavia Spencer. That’s on Apple TV. I enjoy playing my character so much. She’s very different from any other character I’ve played. That’s the thing about me–I try to play a variety of different people because I feel like I can. I can be anything I want to be. So yeah, she’s very different for me, very different from Lucky, very different from any other character I’ve ever played. So I’m really, really enjoying that. I cannot wait to tell you more!
Them: Covenant is available on Amazon Prime.
