*Regina Hall is no stranger to transformation, but in Searchlight Pictures’ O’Dessa, she takes a turn that’s as electrifying as the brass knuckles she wields. As “Neon Dion,” a ruthless enforcer in the neon-drenched dystopia of Satylite City, Hall brings a level of intimidation, control, and fashion-forward menace that’s impossible to ignore.
“It was a character I hadn’t played before,” Hall told EUR. “And it felt like a swing worth taking. I loved the world Geremy [Jasper] created—this mix of music, dystopia, and something both fictitious and eerily familiar. It was just too interesting to pass up.”
Opposite Hall, Kelvin Harrison Jr. embodies the androgynous and enigmatic “Euri Dervish,” a character whose artistic expression is as much a means of survival as it is a personal revolution.
“Euri is a little bit of a tortured artist,” Harrison Jr. explained. “He’s locked in the Love Suite, creating, expressing, but also being controlled. His sexuality is currency, his art is a transaction, and he’s constantly trying to find where performance ends and his real self begins.”
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With O’Dessa flipping gender expectations and blending rockabilly, outlaw glam, and a post-apocalyptic dreamscape, Harrison Jr. embraced the wild costuming and musical collaboration with director Geremy Jasper.
“It was about balancing this larger-than-life persona with someone who’s been stripped of their true self for so long,” he said.
Music is at the core of O’Dessa, both as a form of rebellion and a tool for transformation. So, what song gives them hope?
For Hall, the answer came easy: Free by Prince. “I love that song. It’s from 1999, and it just captures that feeling of freedom, of possibility.”
Harrison Jr. took a cinematic approach: I’m Here from The Color Purple. “That song has so much strength. It honors the journey and everything you go through to get to where you are.”
And Hall wasn’t done: “And Mountains by Prince! That’s another one.”
O’Dessa is set to carve its place as a cult favorite.
Catch it on Hulu March 20.
Jill Munroe is a Los Angeles-bred entertainment journalist, producer, and host. Follow her socials @StilettoJill or visit JillMunroe.com. Catch her live M-F on KBLA Talk 1580 from 6PM to 7PM.
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