The series “Snowfall” returns for a third season on July 10, questioning viewers, “How far would you go for your crew?”
The crime drama by FX is set in South Central Los Angeles during the summer of 1984. It follows the story behind the rise of crack cocaine during that time.
Through the previous seasons, characters like Jerome Saint, played by Amin Joseph, have undergone changes, leaving this season exposed to opportunities of growth – or even the opposite.
“I think the audience can expect to see a lot of the characters they love, maturing and coming at a crossroads of, ‘are they gonna really sacrifice family, perhaps even community and some their own morals for this blind ambition?’’ Joseph said.
Aunt Louie, acted by Angela Lewis, has been supportive of the Franklin Saint in the family business. Lewis said the series portrays the circumstances in a way to steer folks away from the drug.
“I think that we don’t make the drug game seem like it’s something that it’s not. You know what I mean?” Lewis said. “When I go on social media, I read a lot of people really able to see this is not something you want to do. Like, this is dangerous. So, I don’t think we pretend like you should do this and it’s going to be fun.”
Isaiah John, an Atlanta native who plays Leon Simmons in the series, said the show informs younger generations about the long-lasting impact of the epidemic that affected communities in the early 1980s.
“The younger generations, like my generation and younger, we’re able to see the beginning of what we are now experiencing,” John explained. “We see family members, or you know just older people that may have experienced an addiction, and we don’t understand how that even started or where it came from, and now we’re able to watch it on our TV screens and learn.”
Earlier this year, the show’s director John Singleton died after being taken off life support. The Oscar-nominated filmmaker suffered a stroke two weeks earlier.
When thinking of his moments of happiness, John revealed Singleton’s reaction when he witnessed an early draft of the new season.
“It’s a lot of happiness, ’cause we’re like you know helping this machine work. You know, his vision. So, it’s a lot of happiness, you know. I’ve had conversations with John. Before he passed, he saw I think the first five or six episodes, like this the rough cut, and he was happy he was like ‘oh my god, this is, like, amazing,’” John said.
The season three premiere will air on FX at 10 p.m. on July 10.
Note: This story was written for 11Alive’s The A-Scene, NBC Atlanta’s premier source for film and entertainment news in Georgia.
