Kali Reis hits hard. She co-stars with Jodie Foster in the fourth season of HBO’s “True Detective” as a troubled state trooper investigating a mysterious mass murder as Alaska enters its darkest hour of the year. That’s true whether you’re appearing on the show or as a professional boxer with 19 wins. And she has won two weight class World Championships to her credit. She also has numerous Cape Verdean ancestors and her husband is a member of the Seaconke Wampanoag tribe, both Jewish and Sicilian. (During the holidays, she jokes, “We have seven fish, a dreidel, and lots of candles.”)
Reis appeared on Zoom with The Envelope to talk about light in the darkness, Indigenous stories, and standing up to bullying in the world.
As a Rhode Island native, you’re probably familiar with New England winters, but were you prepared for the rigors of Iceland and Alaska, where True Detective was filmed?
I know what it’s like to be bitterly cold. So it helped me prepare, but it was still cold. Iceland looks different depending on the wind. I love heated socks now. We’re set in Alaska, and I absolutely respect and love the native people who have lived there for centuries. They are really bad guys in the way they survive.
How attractive is your role? Evangeline Navarro Did you have the ability to play an indigenous character?
I am not Inupiat, so this was an opportunity to step outside my community. This was a learning opportunity for me. I do not speak for all indigenous people. This is especially true if you are of mixed race. But it was an opportunity to do it the right way.
What bothers you about different depictions of Native culture and life that you’ve seen in the past?
The whole cowboys and Indians and savages thing is beyond the movie industry. It makes me angry that Native people are always portrayed in the same one-dimensional way: drug addicts, alcoholics, battered women. We are trying to have fun, live our daily lives and fight for our culture, land and people. And we are still living in 2024. We are not in the 1500s or 1600s, we are here and we are still going through it. Generational trauma. Natives are funny. We love sharing stories. We won’t shut up. We are long-winded. That’s the type of thing I want to see now.
How do showrunner Issa L feel about this season?fromFez, did you get everything done?
She’s done a really great job including what’s practical and why there are reasons for the way we think and the things we believe. I always say this. “The land is not ours, it belongs to us. People on Native lands know what the land needs.”
“She takes her job very seriously and is very serious about her preparation. But once you get there, it’s like, ‘Let’s see what we can do.’” Kali Reis (right) talks about working with Jodie Foster.
(Michelle K. Short/HBO)
You’re new to acting, what did you learn from working with veteran Jodie Foster?
I didn’t even realize she was in one of my best movies. The closer I got to leaving for Iceland, the more nervous I became. But she was absolutely amazing to work with. I learned a lot. she is fun You will hear her say this: “This is really Navarro’s story. I want to support that.”
What did you get from watching her?
Don’t take things too seriously. She takes her job very seriously and is also very serious about her preparations. But once you get there and you know this through boxing, you think, “Let’s see what we can do.” I’m a Virgo and I try to make everything competitive. But when I’m with her, I want to say, “Hey, calm down, man.”
You were a star in the boxing ring. Why do you want to pursue acting?
I have always been interested in being creative. I looked through my mom’s closet and came up with these characters. I had to take a break from boxing for health reasons. When she was about 22 she went through menopause, and it happened again 10 years later and she was dealing with the aftermath. During 2021, when I was training for my last two competitions, I lost weight too quickly and my hormone levels were not at the (right) levels. My body was like, “Please take a seat.” The situation is now resolved.
So you’re not retired from boxing?
You don’t know how to retire. I haven’t officially hung up (my gloves). Acting has taken the forefront and is a field that has a longer life than martial arts. There are a fight or two where I get up from my chair and fight.
I got punched in the face once as a kid and that was one more time than I wanted to. So why did you get into a sport where you get punched? all many?
I used to fight on the streets when I was young. I will try to fight the bullies who harass my children. I didn’t like it. Getting punched is as stupid as it sounds, but it doesn’t hurt. It’s more like the art of it. It’s like thinking about your toes. Getting punched in the face is no fun. But it’s really fun to be able to dance and create whole stories.
