Season 3 of STARZ's BMF premiers on Mar 1st. There are light spoilers in this interview, so make sure that you catch up on what you've missed of this Detroit crime family show that is based on a true story of brothers Demetrius Edward "Big Meech" (Demetrius Flenory Jr) and Terry Lee "Southwest Tee" Flenory (Da'Vinchi).
We took some time to sit down with BMF's Showrunner, Executive Producer, and writer, Heather Zuhlke. We wanted to know more about her background, how she came to this show, and what she is looking forward to in terms of this season!
ATHLEISURE MAG: We have been such a fan of your work since Southland and of course on POWER so congratulations!
HEATHER ZUHLKE: Oh thank you!
AM: What kinds of stories are you drawn to in terms of writing and Executive Producing?
HZ: Oh yeah, always character driven. Things that touch us really on a soul level! I love – I mean, Southland was never about the case, it was about the people. This show is marketed as a crime and family drama, but the heart and soul of BMF is the family aspects – the blood family and the street family. I think that people really relate to those themes because family is so universal. It’s heightened in our story because your brother is a drug kingpin, your son is a kingpin, so everything is heightened!
AM: I live in NY now, but I grew up in Indianapolis, so I’m familiar with the BMF story as they were in Detroit.
What drew you to being involved as I knew you signed onto the second season and now you’re a Showrunner and helming everything for this season.
HZ: So my journey started – gosh, 9 years ago when I met Randy Huggins (The Unit, Criminal Minds, Star) on the original POWER along with 50, and Randy hit me up and said, “hey, will you be my number two Season 2?” Randy really empowered me on set to produce and to get to know everyone. Then he unfortunately had a health complication right after we wrapped Season 2 so 50 asked me to step in and so this has been so much more for me than a job, because we’re carrying on Randy’s legacy and honoring his vision! And again, this isn’t just a TV show, or a job, we’re really a family.
AM: Obviously, the first 2 seasons were amazing, and the 2nd had me at the edge of my seat with the finale. We had the pleasure of watching the first 3 episodes of the 3rd season and it’s beyond exciting to see what’s going to take place.
What are you excited about for us to see in this new season?
HZ: You know, I’m really excited about the collision of the streets, hip-hop, and pro sports! What you saw in episode 3, there are some big moments for the fans.
I’m also really excited about the finale and the way it pushes story forward and there is going to be another big moment. I’m really excited for the world to see Russell Hornsby (The Affair, Fences, Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector) who plays Charles Flenory and he has his directorial debut which will be for episode 7 and Randy Huggin’s daughter Ms Haven Huggins is making her acting debut in that episode too!
AM: We can’t wait to see how it all plays out! The season is off to a great start and being a fan of yours for such a long time, it’s awesome to see how you bring your worlds to life and your style. It’s great to see you in this show that touches all the points of prestige TV!
HZ: Thank you for being a fan as we do it for you guys!
In addition to chatting with Heather, we also wanted to talk with the cast for them to share their thoughts on being in this show and what we can expect from this season. We sat down with Kelly Hu (The Scorpion King, Dietland, Arrow) and Morgan Alexandria (How to Get Away with Murder, Twenties, This is Us).
ATHLEISURE MAG: It was so exciting to watch the first 3 episodes from the screeners and to get right into it after how Season 2 ended! It will be exciting to see how this season turned out!
Before we dig into that, why were you drawn to BMF?
MORGAN ALEXANDRIA: For me, I was really excited. Obviously, it’s a great story, it’s a true story, and I know of a lot of people who know a lot about the story as they grew up around it and that type of thing. So, it’s legendary in that sense. I’m not going to lie, I was so nervous to play a cop, because it’s one of my things that I’m like, “ah, I don’t know with all of the jargon and so forth!” My team pushed me, I pushed myself and then I was like, the writing is so good and then joining it was such a blessing! Being able to work with Kelly was such an honor, seriously! It was so much fun! She made it so fun!
KELLY HU: We had a lot of fun on set! It’s such a great show and it’s really well done and it’s well written. The actors are amazing and 2nd Season when I came on, I got to do almost all of my scenes with Steve Harris (The Practice, Law & Order: Organized Crime, Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty) who was so much fun! It was nuts! And this season, I get to do all of my scenes with Morgan and we had a blast, seriously! We got pretty close on this.
AM: You can definitely see the chemistry between you and how you’re connected. It made it fun to watch. After I finished the screeners, I wanted to know what happens in the remaining part of the season between your character’s dynamic, because it’s always fun to see the interaction between you on screen.
Kelly, for our readers who need a bit of a refresher. Where do we leave Detective Veronica Jin and what can we expect from her this season?
KH: Well in the 2nd season as I mentioned, she had partnered with Detective Von Bryant. They had their thing going, and that went beyond the police partnership and he got in trouble and she was trying to help him out and got sort of dragged down with him. This season, she’s really trying to save herself and him!
AM: Morgan, this is your first season and we’re just getting introduced to Detective Colbie Anderson! What can you tell us about her?
MA: She’s really an interesting character. For me, there is really a dichotomy going on between her and her internal feelings. She’s a wealthy girl, she comes from a really great background, but she’s still connected to the streets in a sense that she wants to save everyone and try to make a change within her own community. It’s not always welcomed, but we’ll see, you know?
AM: Seeing you guys as partners this season, it’s fun to see the dynamics and how both of you are unveiling certain things about your characters, what can we keep an eye out for that you’re able to share?
KH: I think that we start off the season where Morgan and I are very at odds with one another because of this background that she has as this rich girl. If people saw how I entered into Season 2, they’ll see sort of the same thing going on with me and Steve. You know, me being the new girl and now Morgan in this season, and how things have turned and I sort of get to switch and become Steve’s character where I am testing her all of the time, but then you can watch as we go through the season on how our partnership really blossoms.
MA: I would say that for my character, Anderson, it’s just a lot of proving herself. Not even necessarily of whether she can do the job, but just her background alone makes a lot of people standoffish.
AM: We can’t wait to see how it unfolds. We’ve been a fan of both of your careers in other projects and it’s really cool to see your dynamic together!
IG @kellyhu
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDIT | STARZ/BMF
Read the FEB ISSUE #99 of Athleisure Mag and see BMF | Heather Zuhlke, Kelly Hu, & Morgan Alexandria in mag.
