Why Luke James feels a kinship with his ‘Them’ Season 2 character

By Lisa Respers France, CNN

(CNN) — In Prime Video’s horror anthology “Them: The Scare,” Luke James portrays Edmund Gaines, an aspiring actor, who works at a fictitious pizza restaurant similar to Chuck E. Cheese as he tries to break into the industry.

“That’s his audience. That’s his stage. That’s the only time he gets to be someone else other than himself,” James told CNN. “He’s trying understand where he comes from and why does he exist. And I think as an actor, those are the questions we always ask.”

James came relate.

He first came to fame as a celebrated R&B singer known for his vocal range. He is now is racking up accolades for his performances on the big and small screen.

James was able to meld both his passions – music and acting – in the 2017 limited series “The New Edition Story” in which he played singer Johnny Gill, who stepped into the boy band in 1987 to replace Bobby Brown after he was voted out of the singing group.

The desire to perform started early for James.

“As an only child, the arts have always been something that in a way felt like some sort of a beacon of light that helped me go on a journey to find out more about myself,” he said. “Via music, I learned how to love, how to cry, how to let go, how to feel God.”

When it comes acting, the New Orleans native has honed his skills with in appearances on TV shows like “Insecure” and “Star,” as well as in movies like “Little.”

He has also garnered a devoted fan base via his role as Trig Taylor on the drama “The Chi.”

The second season of “Them” finds James starring in the horror/thriller genre for the first time. Set about four decades after the first season of “Them,” the new season centers on a Los Angeles Police Department homicide detective, played by Deborah Ayorinde, investigating the death of a foster mother.

To James the project, which features actors and creators of color, felt like a natural fit.

“I’m just grateful that I got to be a part of this,” he said. “There’s a new world and who better to talk about trauma than us, the most traumatized people in the world. It’s like, we can tell you about horror!”

As for music, his fans have also been clamoring for him to get back in the studio since his last studio albums were “To Feel Love/d” and “For No Reason” in 2020.

There’s also a pretty famous advocate.

“Johnny Gill calls me every few blue moons to make sure I’m still singing,” James said, laughing. “If I didn’t have music, I don’t know who I’d be so I make music every day. It’s just a matter of my soul moving me enough to say, ‘Here’ to the world, this is what I’ve been working on.”

“Them: The Scare” starts streaming on Prime Thursday.

The-CNN-Wire
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