In horror/thriller series, Black characters don’t usually have the best luck. They’re often portrayed as the sidekick to the real leader—usually a mediocre white guy—or they sacrifice themselves to save the main character—usually a mediocre white guy—or they’re the villain.
One series that’s subverting those expectations is the MGM+ drama “From.” It follows the residents of a mysterious small town, who are trapped and menaced by deadly supernatural creatures. Harold Perrineau leads the cast as Boyd, the unofficial sheriff and mayor. He leads the fight to survive and escape their situation with their humanity mostly intact. Though, Season 3 saw his morality and sanity tested stretched to its breaking point.
He doesn’t have superpowers or special abilities to help him deal with all the catastrophes that keep popping up. He’s just a normal guy doing the best he can, and that’s what makes him so fascinating.
The show recently wrapped up a crazy Season 3 and has already been renewed for Season 4, so we wanted to take some time to shoutout Perrineau and Boyd for the game changing representation they’re bringing to the genre.
When you get invested in series like these, the number one rule is “no one is safe.” No matter how much you love a character, they can be killed off at any moment, an element that was put on devastating display in Season 3. This is something Perrineau is very aware of, as it’s a frequent concern from the fans he meets.
“Lately it’s been a steady stream of people who are like ‘I love ‘From,’ but if they kill Boyd, I’m gonna be mad!’ Like, I can’t control that,” he told Gold Derby. “It’s been really exciting to see that it’s really getting into people’s homes and they’re really digging it.”
Though the Season 3 finale delivered shocking reveals about the town’s history and how some of its residents are connected to the mythology, Perrineau still has a few theories of his own.
“The Best Man” star revealed that he thinks this could be a game someone is playing by inflicting these nightmares on everyone. Supernatural stories usually have an evil entity acting as the puppetmaster, so this is definitely a possibility. Maybe it’s the man in yellow? Maybe it’s someone we haven’t met yet? Or maybe they’ve been hiding in plain sight this whole time? We kind of hope it’s the latter, because those lead to the most fascinating plot twists.
This isn’t the veteran actor’s first go round with mysterious storylines. However, this time he’s choosing not to find out where things are headed. He gets what he needs for his character and performance, then follows the rest of the plot like a fan. Of course, if he decides he wants to know more, there are plenty of fan theories to keep him occupied.
One fan on TikTok sees Boyd’s increasingly erratic behavior as a sign that everyone must “learn a lesson” before they can leave. He posits that all these trapped people must “get their spirits right” so they can be better once they escape.
Honestly, it’s not a horrible theory and something we’ve seen before in other supernatural stories. Plus, the things Boyd is going through do make it seem like he’s on some sort of spiritual journey.
The way Boyd has evolved across all three seasons has been captivating to watch. He’s a real person, with feelings, emotions and actual character development, something Black characters don’t always get in horror series. After the emotional roller coaster he went on in Season 3, we can’t wait to see where he goes next. For all we know, he’s the secret puppetmaster.
If your interest has been piqued, you have plenty of time to jump into the chaos and check out the first three seasons of “From” on MGM+, because Season 4 won’t premiere until 2026.