Diarra Kilpatrick Says She and Her “Diarra from Detroit” Character Share the Same ‘Superpower’ (Exclusive)

Janey WetzelThu, August 13, 2026 at 11:29 PM UTC

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Diarra KilpatrickCredit: Leon Bennett/Getty -

Diarra Kilpatrick says her character’s “delulu” mindset mirrors her own belief in pursuing dreams despite the odds

The comedy-mystery series explores Kilpatrick’s more “reckless” side as she navigates Detroit’s underworld in a wild adventure

Season two of Diarra from Detroit premiered July 29 on Paramount+ with new episodes airing every Wednesday through Sept. 9

Diarra Kilpatrick and her Diarra from Detroit character have more in common than just their name.

In fact, the actress, 42, says one of her character’s defining traits is something she considers a “superpower” of her own.

“She [her character] is the queen of delulu... I think that I’m quite delusional as well,” the Kilpatrick tells PEOPLE. “I don’t think about the statistics of who can succeed. When I was a little girl watching, like, Julia Roberts movies, it never once occurred to me, ‘There are no Black people in these movies.’ I didn’t think about that. I just ran headfirst in that direction because I thought they were fun movies and they inspired me.”

“I think that I tend to think and believe that things will just work out,” she continues. “I do think that delulu is a superpower, that’s her superpower, and it’s probably one of mine as well.”

In the comedy series, Kilpatrick plays Diarra Brickland, a Detroit schoolteacher dealing with a messy divorce, and a serious case of denial after being ghosted by a rebound Tinder date.

Diarra Kilpatrick as Diarra Brickland in season two of ‘Diarra From Detroit’Credit: BET/Paramount+

Her quest to track him down plunges her into a decades-old mystery within the Detroit underworld, forcing her coworkers, friends and lovers to become unlikely allies as she falls down a dangerous rabbit hole.

“There are so many elements of me,” Kilpatrick explains to PEOPLE. “I put myself in every character. A lot of times people think just because that’s the one I named myself after, the one I play, that she’s the one I’m most like.”

“I think I have a lot of Aja in me,” she continues, speaking about her character’s onscreen best friend. “I think I have a lot of danger in me. But, I don’t kill people. I just want to put that on the record,” she joked.

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There are also plenty of differences between Kilpatrick and her character.

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“I mean, a lot of actors will say, ‘I never judge my character.’ You know, they’re like, ‘I played a serial killer and I never once judged him.’ Not I,” she notes. “There’s a huge difference there in that I am definitely never gonna be walking the streets of Detroit trying to solve crimes... I’m gonna be at home under the blanket with a margarita cuddling with my husband and child.”

Her boisterous character lets her explore a more “reckless” and “risk-taking” side of herself that she doesn’t get to live out as a normal, tax-paying citizen.

In the show’s second season, each episode is guided by Diarra’s voiceover. She rewinds to recount the gang of characters’ hijinks and explain her choices, with her own narration serving as a constant reminder to the audience that she frequently struggles to make sensible, logical decisions.

“You have to be delulu to even get out of bed in the morning,” Kilpatrick jokes.

“I’ve always wanted to do something that was in the Indiana Jones/National Treasure space... and I knew nobody was ever gonna write for me,” Kilpatrick recalls to PEOPLE of writing season two. “So I knew I wanted to do that, but it’s always the exploration once you get the writers in there, once you start filling in the cast, it becomes such a collaboration. What I discovered this season is just how big of a sandbox the world of Diarra from Detroit is and how many different places the show can go,” she adds.

Season two of Diarra from Detroit premiered with two episodes on July 29 and is followed by one new episode every Wednesday through Sept. 9 on  Paramount+.

on People

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”