True Detective: Night Country ’s Kali Reis on Why She Made Her Character a Scorpio

Photograph: Warner Brothers; Collage: Gabe Conte

Five minutes into reading the script for True Detective: Night Country, Kali Reis had a thought: “Oh, this is some supernatural shit right here.”

Reis, a world champion boxer who hails from Rhode Island, stars as Evangeline Navarro in this season of the beloved crime anthology series. She plays a state trooper in the remote fictional village of Ennis, Alaska haunted by the unsolved murder of a local Iñupiat woman. Across from industry vet Jodie Foster as surly police chief Liz Danvers, the two characters are tasked with solving the mysterious, gruesome death of eight men at an arctic research station. Night Country, helmed by Issa López, is a standalone achievement, but with plenty of callbacks to the famed first season of True Detective—spirals, Lone Star beer, and, yes, all the supernatural shit.

This is Reis's third acting job ever, though she plays Navarro with such ease and presence that you'd never be able to tell. From her home in Philly, Reis spoke to GQ about why boxing and acting have more in common than you’d think, the many similarities between her and her character, and which one of them would win in a fight.

GQ: How did the True Detective role come your way?

Kali Reis: They got wind of Catch the Fair One, which is the first feature film I did, and they were looking for somebody to fill the spot of Navarro. And Issa [Lopez] just really wanted to know who I was. She highlights missing women in her film work, especially being from Mexico and that being a terrible epidemic. We shared that, wanting to put that in our work. I got the audition after speaking with her, put it out to the universe, and waited for the phone call. And here we are.

Were you a fan of the older seasons?

Oh, diehard fan. I watched season one way too many times, but I absolutely loved the show.

There are a ton of callbacks to season one—the spirals are back! How did Issa explain that?

It really tied with the supernatural story, because she made it a point to highlight the Indigenous people of Alaska. So it intertwined or spiraled around the actual people of the land and their stories too. It was an opportunity to take the spiral and make it into its own story now.

You have a ton in common with Navarro—both of you are Indigenous, both of you advocate for missing Native women. I also read that you studied criminology in school. Is that true?

I did. I went to school for criminal justice and wanted to be a corrections officer for juveniles.

Where do you feel like you relate to her the most and where do you differ?

First and foremost, the walking into worlds, being of mixed heritage and not feeling like you're enough for either. She's Iñupiat and Dominican. I'm Cape Verdean and Wampanoag. You're not native enough for the natives, you're not Black enough for the Black ones. People want to see paperwork like I'm a bred dog. It's ridiculous. So just that aspect and having to really feel like you have to prove yourself all the time and fighting for a community that doesn't fully accept you. Being a protector—Navarro has this unrelenting craving for fighting for justice and finding out the truth.

Military is where we differ. I am not an ex-Marine. I've never done tours. I've only heard stories. And Navarro has a quick trigger. I have a trigger and I'm a hot hothead, but Lord Almighty, she has no hesitation. I'm a Virgo, where things compartmentalize, and I made Navarro a Scorpio. I'm a Scorpio rising, so I understand it, but I don't be acting like she does.

I love that you made her a Scorpio.

11/11 is the birthday. She's a Scorpio.

You’re also a world champion boxer. Do you remember the first fight you ever won in your life?

I won my first fight, but I remember the first title I won. That was the most significant one. I fought in Bermuda against somebody that was originally from Bermuda for the IBA world title. It was during Native American Heritage Month. Historically, my people on that coast were taken as slaves from their land to Bermuda in a slave trade. So it was kind of ceremonial as far as going there, fighting, winning, and being able to take my ancestors back. That's the most significant fight I've ever had.

What made you want to try acting? And do you see any similarities between the disciplines?

Acting wasn't like, "I'm going to grow up and be in Hollywood. That's what I want to do." It was one of those things where in boxing, I've accomplished a lot, but acting was on my radar. It seems fun. Maybe I'll be, I don't know, an extra in a Gatorade commercial. But I put it out in the universe. I said, "If it's meant to me, it'll find me." And a week to that day, the director-writer for [Catch the Fair One] reached out to me on Instagram.

It was like, "Have you ever thought about acting?" At first I'm like, "Here comes another weirdo with this movie that he wants me to be in." Because I've gotten a lot of those like, "Hey, I got this movie," but nothing ever panned out. He was very adamant on knowing it was an important story to tell, but it wasn't his. So I just learned from him. Directorially, we created the story. He threw me into, like, we call it an acting bootcamp, for four days with the acting coach I still work with today. So that's how I started, really. I didn't even mean to. It just happened.

Is there anything from your boxing life that you use on set?

The endurance to do things repetitively, learn from the mistakes, do something better, try something new, take criticism, not taking it personal, trusting the people that see what you don't see. It's the same thing. If you want a good fight, you got to have a really good opponent. Having a good scene partner, being able to be on your toes and be present and adjust when needed. You can rehearse the scene and practice in the gym for a hundred days, but if something changes, you have to be able to think and adjust. You have to be prepared for everything.

And also when the bell rings, I'm out. I check in and check out. The ability to check in all the way and have no hesitation and a hundred percent give it everything and then check all the way in out. A lot of parallels to both. And [boxing is] an entertainment business at the very end.

So who would win in a fight? You or Detective Navarro?

Navarro would turn it into a street fight. You ever see The Family Guy episode when he's fighting the chicken the entire episode? That would be Navarro. That would be me and Navarro fighting the entire time. And then we'd go feel bad and start crying.

What was working with Jodie Foster like?

She was terrible. [Laughs.] She was absolutely amazing, man. I had a fangirl moment when she walked through the door. I'm like, "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God." But she is hilarious. She's so, so intelligent. She brings everything to the table and she's so curious. She loves to work together and collaborate, and she's so supportive as well. I learned a lot from her, just watching her operate in her territory.

What was the best advice she gave you?

Don't take everything so serious. And also if it's a full yes for you and it feels good to you, do it. Do what feels organically good to you and fuck everybody else basically.

Is there anything in your time being an actor that you found to be the most surprising part of the job or unexpected?

Having a driver. How much I love it. I was like, "I like to drive, but this is amazing." And having somebody have my clothes, do my hair. I was like, "Oh man, y'all are ruining me."

And your next project is the Wind River sequel, which you filmed right after True Detective. What can you tell us about that?

I absolutely love the script. I can't even say much. They take a different direction with it. It’s a love-hate relationship with the first one, and I have my reasons, but I think what they did with the second one, Native country is really going to appreciate it. It's so cool. My character is not in a dark, cold place, I can tell you that.

Who’s up there on your list of dream directors and actors to work with?

I’ve always loved Michelle Rodriguez. I feel like that's one thing that I’ve subconsciously had on my radar to be an actor 'cause I've always been obsessed with Michelle Rodriguez. Denzel is on my list—I would love, love, love to work with Denzel. Viola Davis, she's from Rhode Island too. And I would love to work with Jodie again and Issa if they can direct and star with me for the rest of my career.

Originally Appeared on GQ

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