[This story contains spoilers from the first two episodes of Smoke, “Pilot” and “Your Happy Makes Me Sad.”]

Jurnee Smollett will never back away from a challenge; in fact, she thrives on it.

The 38-year-old actress, who first gained recognition as a child star in the ’90s with her roles in Eve’s Bayou, Full House and On Our Own, is always looking for ways to grow with her characters. She doesn’t want to ever be “pigeonholed as one type of thing,” she makes clear.

“Whether it was a superhero in DC Comics or Letitia-fucking-Lewis in [Lovecraft Country], or a lawyer in The Burial, or a single mom fighting to find her daughter in Lou, I’m so fortunate that I get to step into all these different professions,” Smollett tells The Hollywood Reporter.

In her latest role, she’s now taking what she says is an even more “complex” and “flawed” character. In the Apple TV+ series Smoke she plays Michelle, a troubled detective who is “struggling with these real inner demons,” she says. The show is inspired by true events and follows her character and Taron Egerton’s Dave, an enigmatic arson investigator, as they pursue the trails of two serial arsonists.

Below, Smollett teases the “twists and turns” ahead in Smoke season one, opens up about her preparations to play Michelle, the advice Forest Whitaker once gave her that she still uses today and reveals the moment she’s most proud of in her career.

What initially drew you to Smoke?

I’m a huge fan of Dennis Lehane [Smoke creator] and his writing, going back decades. He’s one of the premier crime-thriller novelists and such an incredible architect of character. So when I read the script, I was truly blown away by his ability to craft such rich suspense and intensity, while also weaving in these interpersonal relationships that are rich and complex. This character of Michelle was so juicy (laughs) and so flawed. She’s struggling with these real inner demons; her trauma from her childhood and her relationships with her mother and how it manifests. It was such an opportunity as an actor to stretch and do something unlike anything I’ve really done. I physically transformed, I put on like 15 pounds of muscle. She’s a former Marine and has to have more of a stocky, tough persona than I naturally have. 

How did you prepare and get into the headspace to play an intense character like Michelle?

I always go back to the tools that I use with my craft. I have an amazing team around me of coaches and folks where we really dive in and deconstruct what’s there, in order to construct a character. I was fascinated by this theme that Dennis spoke about: “People say they want to be happy, yet they’re consumed with the very thing that will destroy them.” With Michelle, fire is the motif for this force that she struggles with inside, in which she is drawn to the very thing that is going to be her downfall, like the relationship with her boss, who’s also the police captain. She’s a bit of a self-saboteur, and I think we can all relate to that. We can relate to that struggle where you go, “Wait, I know I’m supposed to take this route and yet I’m so enticed by going this way.”

How was it working alongside Taron Egerton on the series?

It was so awesome! Taron is so insanely talented. I did not meet him until the table read, which was great because it was almost like we were meeting each other at the same time that our characters were; I didn’t meet him, I met Dave, and he didn’t meet me, he met Michelle. Everything from the accent and the persona that he created with Dave feels so unlike any characters he’s ever played.

Is it challenging to have to meet someone and their character at the same time like that? Especially when working so closely together?

It’s all challenging. If you’re not up for the challenge, get out of the ring. I think I thrive on challenge. I remember one of my mentors, Forest Whitaker, telling me a long time ago, “If you’re taking on a project and you’re not nervous, then run.” He said, “Lean into the challenge, lean into all of the emotions that you feel. It means you are being stretched to grow,” and truly that’s all I want. I want to work with storytellers who create characters that force me to grow. I want to work with collaborators and actors like Taron, where when you’re in the ring with each other everything feels fresh and exciting and no one’s phoning it in.  

Since Smoke was loosely based on the true-crime podcast Firebug and real-life arson events, how did that help you prepare for the show? 

It was a great source. I listened to it a few times and really dissected it. I also interviewed a few detectives, a few arson investigators and I have a friend who’s a firefighter. Then I researched myself online, more so the things having to do with Michelle and this PTSD relationship she has to fire. 

At the end of episode two, it’s revealed that Egerton’s Dave is one of the serial arsonists. Following that episode’s cliffhanger, can you tease what we can expect from the rest of the season?

No one is safe in Dennis Lehane’s hands (Laughs). No character is safe. Everyone is, in essence, wearing some form of a mask; who they are forward-facing is in contradiction to who they are internally, and that makes for very interesting characters. They all have these things they’re lying to themselves about. Michelle’s lying to herself and to other people about a number of things. I’m really excited for people to see the twists and turns, because it is really this gripping crime drama. Yet, at its heart, you’ve got these characters who are struggling to get up and get out of bed every day. By the end of the season, Michelle has gone through such absolute change, which was really thrilling for me as an actor to track that change and to work with Dennis and the storytellers and directors. She’s completely different by the end and does things that will shock people. 

Having been a part of the entertainment industry from such a young age, how did that inform the actor you are today?  

[From] my experience on sets, I know what every person’s job is, and I love the collaborative process of filmmaking and storytelling. I want to serve the story in a way where it helps support everyone around me so we all can do our best. I’ve been very fortunate to work with some of our greatest actors of all time, and I’ve learned so much from each of them, things that I keep in my back pocket of tools. Whether it’s Denzel Washington or Jamie Foxx or Angela Bassett or Robin Williams, I’ve learned by watching and studying them. And one thing they all have in common is they’re generous with their craft. They will act harder when the camera is not on them than they do when the camera is on them, because they want to make sure the scene is the best version of the scene for their partner. I’ve also worked with really not great folks who think they’re great, and they’re the ones who are competitive and self-absorbed and selfish scene partners. I swore that I would never be that way because it doesn’t serve the story. The story suffers. So my biggest takeaway is really that the joy should be used for a bigger purpose. The thrill is losing yourself in the character, but the character has to serve the story. 

Having starred in The Order last year, which centers on bank robberies and car heists, and now Smoke, which centers on arsons, are you drawn to the true-crime genre, or is it just a coincidence? 

I think it’s a coincidence, but I also feel incredibly privileged if I look back over the past few projects I’ve done. Whether it was a superhero in DC Comics or it was Letitia-fucking-Lewis in [Lovecraft Country] or a lawyer in The Burial or a single mom fighting to find her daughter in Lou or an FBI agent with The Order, and now a detective, it’s thrilling because I always said I didn’t want to be pigeonholed as one type of thing and I feel really fortunate to be able to tap into all these different pathways. I’m so fortunate that I get to step into all these different professions.

Do you have a dream genre, role or project you would like to do in the future?  

Musical!

When you have a day off from set, what does your perfect free day look like?

I’m a mom to an 8-year-old little boy, so it would definitely involve some sort of physical activity with him: basketball, baseball, cooking together, swimming. Somewhere around water and nature with the people I love, or taking a warm bath and listening to awesome music. The other thing would be playing piano and chocolate. What we do can sometimes be surrounded by a lot of chaos, and so a lot of the work that I do in my quiet time to keep me grounded is very calm and non-chaotic, and some people might say boring, but man, I love boring. I love mundane. I love rituals and stability. 

Is there a moment throughout your career so far that you’re most proud of? 

I’m very grateful that people still come up to me and they reference projects that moved them. A woman came up to me not too long ago and told me that she was inspired to join the debate team because of Great Debaters, and then it made her become a lawyer and she now is this really great lawyer. I think art matters and is essential. I so often think about James Baldwin’s talk about the integrity of an artist. I’m paraphrasing, but he talks about it being a force you didn’t ask for, and yet it’s a destiny you must accept and if you don’t lie, if you don’t cheat, it’s not only your glory but it’s almost our only hope, because only artists have and only artists can, since humans have been created, been able to come to earth and tell us all what it’s like to survive it. So I think I’m most proud that I haven’t sold my integrity, that my resume is not 50 pages long. I’m in a position of privilege where I can choose things that connect with me and I’m able to work with storytellers and collaborators that challenge me, thrill me and make me excited to get up every day and come to work. 

If you had to describe what makes Jurnee Smollett, Jurnee Smollett, what would you say? 

My smile, my inner joy. You may not know by all the dark roles I pick. (Laughs). But I work really hard, and I can’t take all the credit because I do believe in a higher power. But I work really hard to protect my joy and I think that’s a radical act.  

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The first two episodes of Smoke are now streaming on Apple TV+, with new episodes dropping weekly on Fridays.