Black Lightning breakout talks playing a black lesbian superhero

Nafessa Williams is very grateful for her role on Black Lightning.

On The CW’s new superhero drama, Williams stars as Anissa Pierce, the lesbian daughter of the show’s titular hero (Cress Williams) who is studying to become a doctor and discovers that she, too, has powers. In a time when representation in media is becoming increasingly more important, Williams isn’t taking the responsibility of playing a black lesbian superhero on network television lightly.

Earlier this month, fans received a first look at Williams in costume as Thunder; however, they’ll have to wait a bit longer to see her suit up on the show. At this point in the series’ run, Anissa is still the discovery stage of having superpowers. Black Lightning‘s first two episodes ended with Anissa accidentally using her super-strength in moments of stress (after a nightmare and during a robbery), but that will change in Tuesday’s installment “LaWanda: The Book of the Burial.” Anissa begins tonight’s episode in a junkyard where she’s testing her powers out in order to figure out what the hell is going on with her body.

Ahead of Tuesday’s episode, EW hopped on the phone to chat with Williams about how she landed this historic role, what’s in store for Anissa this season, and the introduction of her new love interest, DC Comics character Grace Choi (Chantal Thuy), who makes her debut this week.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: First off, can you walk me through how you came to join Black Lightning?
NAFESSA WILLIAMS: [I was] in the thick of pilot season last year and I got the call the second or third week of February. I read the breakdown of the character and I was sold when I saw the foundation of who Anissa was. That was one aspect of it. But, it was a no-brainer when I saw [executive producers Salim Akil and Mara Brock Akil] were working on a new project. I enjoy their work. I love the way they create characters and the way they tell their stories. I knew they’d keep it authentic, and I was just honored to join and work with them, honestly.

Were you a fan of Black Lightning comics or comic books in general before signing on?
It was pretty much all new to me, so I had to go back and look into the comic book and do all my research. Thank god, there’s a lot of research out there because he’s been around since 1977. It was cool to be able to do that. I’m just happy to be part of a timely piece.

Did the Akils give you Black Lightning stories to read or was it just all on you to figure out what to read?
They pretty much give you a breakdown of who the character is and their vision for it. Then, it’s up to you to do your homework and break the character down yourself.

How does Anissa feel about these powers that she’s developing?
Well, you’ll see over the next few episodes that she is discovering her powers. She goes on this journey of self-discovery of both becoming a woman and also discovering her powers. I will say there’s a bit of a struggle she’s going through with understanding it, but once she realizes what’s happening and how they work and where they came from, she’s super excited and ready to go [in] head first. She believes it’s her passion and calling from god, and she walks in it boldly.

She’s also an activist and studying to become a doctor, so gaining these powers are kind of like another way for her to help people.
Exactly. Her parents want her to help people by becoming a doctor, but she wants to help people by actually being out there in the community. She loves being a teacher. She loves being advocate for education. She loves going into the community and actually trying to stop crime and fight social injustice. In being a superhero, this is Anissa’s way of saving the world and helping people. I love her strength and the power that she walks in.

We also know her sister Jennifer (China Anne McClain) will also develop powers. How do Anissa and Jennifer differ in how they handle these powers and newfound responsibility?
Anissa is very eager and excited and she feels like it’s her calling, but [I’m] not really sure that Jennifer feels the same way. I don’t want to give too much away because you guys will see the difference of how we accept and receive our powers, but I’ll say that I’m the most eager. If you ask my parents, I’m a bit too eager without fully understanding [it]. She’s just really excited about going on the journey of being a superhero.

At this point Anissa doesn’t know her father, Jefferson, is Black Lightning, so how long does it take for her to open up to him about what’s going on?
She’s in this [time of] discovery and she begins to struggle with it because she’s learning these things about herself and she’s finding out about how these powers work and where they came from. But it’s one of those things [where she wonders], Am I a freak? Do I share it? Is anyone going to believe me? My parents are over protective, how are they going to accept it? It’s almost in the mental space you’re at if you’re coming out as a gay or a lesbian to your parents. It’s a parallel like that as well. It’s a secret that she holds onto for a while because she really doesn’t know who to talk to about it and how people are going to react to that.

We also know you get a love interest in Grace Choi this season. What’s their dynamic like?
Anissa and Grace have a lot in common. If you’re familiar with the comics, they were a group called The Outsiders. She’s a peace of mind for Anissa. It’s pretty cool to be able to tap into that. This is something new for me, playing an openly lesbian [character] on television. I’m always opposite men, so it’s pretty cool to challenge myself and tap into something different. I was excited for that aspect as well.

Black Lightning airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on The CW.