Jurnee Smollett Explores the Dark Side of Humanity in Apple TV+'sSmoke
So, let’s talk about one of the most intense new series streaming right now—Apple TV+’s Smoke . And at the center of all this fire—literally and emotionally—is Jurnee Smollett, who plays Detective Michelle Calderone. You may know Smollett from Lovecraft Country or Birds of Prey , but in Smoke , she takes on a role that’s raw, layered, and, honestly, pretty messed up—in the best way.
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The show is inspired by a real story that’s honestly stranger than fiction. It was adapted by Dennis Lehane, the creator of Black Bird , and it’s based on the Firebug podcast. The series is loosely tied to the chilling true case of John Orr—a fire captain turned serial arsonist who’s believed to have set over 2,000 fires in Southern California. That’s where Smoke begins its story, but it takes place in a fictional Pacific Northwest town, and the focus is on the psychological cat-and-mouse between Smollett’s character and her fire-obsessed partner.
Taron Egerton plays Dave Gudsen, an arson investigator who also happens to be the guy starting the fires. Smollett’s Michelle Calderone is brought in as his partner, freshly transferred from the robbery division under suspicious circumstances. On the surface, she’s a former Marine and a hard-edged detective, but what makes this character so compelling is what’s boiling underneath. She’s haunted—literally—by a traumatic childhood event where she was left for dead in a motel fire. And to complicate things even more, she’s having an affair with her boss, played by Rafe Spall.
Smollett has been clear about what drew her to Michelle: she didn’t want to just play another “strong, badass woman.” She was interested in portraying someone deeply flawed—someone who self-sabotages, makes morally questionable choices, and is still trying to figure out how to survive. Smollett even said in interviews that she was reading books like The Mountain Is You and The Big Leap while building the character, diving into themes of self-destruction and healing.
And the writing? Dennis Lehane does what he does best. You find out early on who the arsonist is, so it’s not about whodunnit—it’s about how it all unravels. It’s a slow burn with moments of emotional combustion, and the cast around Smollett and Egerton—people like Greg Kinnear, John Leguizamo, and Anna Chlumsky—only elevate the tension.
So if you’re in the mood for something dark, thoughtful, and thrilling, Smoke might just be the show to light up your screen.
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